


Cycles of Life

by HyperMint



Series: Summer Contacts [10]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, NCIS, Sherlock - Fandom
Genre: Angst, Being Human cameos, Callen (NCIS LA), Eames (Inception) - Freeform, F/M, Family, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Peter Burke (White Collar) - Freeform, Pre and Post Reichenbach, Reichenbach Feels, cameos from other shows
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-22
Updated: 2017-01-01
Packaged: 2018-04-05 17:09:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 24
Words: 113,847
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4188018
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HyperMint/pseuds/HyperMint
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The cycles of life are birth, marriage and death. </p><p>Harry and his friends celebrate these events at the end of July.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

It was a quiet summer night in Surrey.

Every house on the block was quiet with darkened windows showing that their occupants were sound asleep.

But at one residence – Number Four Privet Drive, to be exact -, if you paid close enough attention to the upstairs window on the left, you might be able to catch a glimpse of light as the room’s occupant – one Harry Potter – fiddled with a torchlight.

Harry sighed as he ran a finger down the barrel of the torch.

It was closing on midnight and he knew he should be asleep like everyone else, but the note he’d received earlier that afternoon had instructed him to be ready for a pick-up from the Dursley household.

Leaning against his bed, Harry picked up the note and perused the unfamiliar, untidy scrawl for the hundredth time that day.

_Mr. Potter,_

_Please be ready to depart the premises at exactly twelve o’clock tonight._

And at the very bottom was scrawled the initials _SH_ , which he was really curious about.

Still, he reasoned with himself, if this SH was going to pick him up, then Professor Dumbledore would have had to been okay with it. The wards surrounding the house had guaranteed the Order of the Phoenix’s knowledge of events, seeing as how one would need the permission of the Order just to get on the grounds.

So, Harry just had to presume that whoever SH was, they had Dumbledore’s blessing and Harry would just have to trust his Headmaster to not lead him into a trap.

Okay, easier said than done.

In any case, Harry made sure to keep an eye on both time and window as the anticipated arrival got closer.

In the last letter from his Godfather, Sirius had told him that the Weasley family was finished with all the preparations for his arrival and he should expect someone to get him soon. Harry wondered who would be picking him up this time and snorted as he remembered being left in the park, waiting for his pick-up and feeling like a sitting duck.

Thankfully, his Italian-American friend, NCIS Agent Tony DiNozzo, had shown up and brought him safely to his destination.

As for Harry’s initial pick-up, they never figured out what had ever happened to Rica Dale and Harry sincerely doubted that they ever would. Death Eaters had been making a habit of disappearing people – though, strangely, not as much recently – and it was safe to assume that Rica had been one of their victims. What was not immediately as clear was whether she’d been a target or whether it had simply been a case of wrong place, wrong time.

He really hoped that it wouldn’t be the case with SH and he didn’t even have Hedwig to message anyone.

His snowy white owl had been acting strangely for the past few days until she flew out and didn’t come back. He hoped she was alright.

Harry watched as the clock hit midnight. Looking around the room, he frowned as he noted the lack of anyone else.

Getting up to look out the window, Harry couldn’t see a soul.

He frowned a few minutes later.

‘It’s after midnight. Shouldn’t someone have been here already?’

If it got too late, he could go to Mrs. Figg’s house and leave from there. Dumbledore had told him that someone was going to get him, after all.

But SH was supposed to be that person and was yet to appear. Though, maybe something came up and they were running late. Things like that happened, right?

He decided to wait before doing anything should that be the case. It wasn’t like his life depended on leaving right now, anyway. He could wait.

He looked around in the meantime to be sure that everything was packed. It didn’t hurt to be sure.

Harry had spent the day getting ready to leave and took one last moment to make sure that everything had gone into his backpack and trunk to take along on whatever adventure the next school year would bring.

He looked under the loose floorboard, which he’d checked before. Nothing was in the closet or dresser and he knew it, because he’d marked everything off his mental list while packing.

He sighed. He couldn’t wait to get back to school already.

But first, however, he had to get through the rest of the summer holidays and the wedding he was eagerly anticipating at the Burrow. And his birthday was in two weeks, besides.

It was shaping up to be an excellent end to the holidays. But, as much as he was looking forward to everything, he was looking forward to his birthday more.

It was something every witch and wizard knew well and anticipated: turning seventeen. In the Magical world, seventeen meant that you were an adult and could perform magic outside of school without consequences. To Harry, it meant that he could move out of his relatives’ house and live somewhere else. Ever since he found that out, he’d been waiting to turn seventeen and leave the Dursleys. His relatives treated him much like the Malfoy family had treated their house-elf Dobby until Harry released him in Second Year.

Harry wouldn’t say he would be sorry when it came time to go. But this also brought up the question of where he would go after the school year was finished. Once Harry left, he had no intention of ever going back.

Something that Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger well knew.

His two best friends were well aware of the way his family treated him in the past and even now. His Uncle made it clear that he didn’t want to see him again, either. That was fine by Harry.

‘So, SH is late,’ he glanced at the clock again. Harry was going kind of stir-crazy in that room, so he decided to double check that he’d got everything from downstairs.

He slowly opened the door, quietly trudged down the stairs to the ground floor and found himself staring at the one space that all of his magical things would be located during at least a month every summer.

While he wouldn’t mind missing the second bedroom once used to house his cousin’s toys, the cupboard under the stairs had been the first home he’d really known before Hogwarts. He had made it his and he smiled slightly as he opened its door for the last time.

It was empty of things – as he’d taken extra care to make sure he got everything from it -, but he bent down to get in and swung the door closed, turning the torch off. He sat on the floor and let himself remember all the memories he’d made in his little home. There were many from before his First Year at Hogwarts, not many were happy, though.

But Hogwarts?

It had been the start of his adventures, his best friends Ron and Hermione right there along with him every step of the way.

It hadn’t been until recently, however, that their other best friend had been the center of one.

Harry had met Tony DiNozzo the summer before Third Year.

He worked in America and was a Liaison with the department of Magical Naval Personnel, along with working at the Muggle NCIS. His co-worker, Jimmy Palmer, was a Wizard, too, and he’d been such a big help last year, when Tony had disappeared.

It had been a nerve wracking year to be sure, because they’d not only worried about Tony, but their Defense teacher – they had first thought – had been after Harry.

What else should they have thought? All but one had tried hurting him – except for maybe Second Year – so far.

Tony had told them, via the mobile that they’d been led to, that there was something they had needed to find and Harry and Hermione had ended up going to America, along the way meeting people from the MNP and NCIS and they had found information about the  second Wizard they had believed was after Harry.

Long story short, both Carlin and Aniston had been behind what had appeared to be accidents in order to get Ron hurt enough so that his Mum would go to the school.

They still didn’t fully understand, but it had been something that Tony had been familiar with due to his Muggle job. What probably ended up saving Ron was the fact that the cousins hadn’t targeted his core magic, but had made the mistake of going after his surface magic.

If it had been any other student, it wouldn’t have been a problem, but that decision had wreaked havoc on the spell itself. The core of the spelled accidents hadn’t been limited to just Ron, but to Harry, Tony and Hermione as well.

In Fifth Year, the four had toasted the New Year with what had ended up being the Black Family Marriage Set. As it turned out, they needed constant contact with each other to be healthy. It was originally used between couples who spent various amounts of time together, but that was the problem with Tony in America.

That they hadn’t fallen ill last year was thought to have been the little pebbles that Tony had infused with his magic. Really, it had not, in fact, been the pebbles – but Tony himself.

During the first Hogsmeade Weekend of the year, the Trio had found who they had assumed to be Harry’s Godfather. He’d had a magic bind on him, so he couldn’t change back. When it wore off a few months ago, Tony had revealed himself to be the canine Animagus who looked virtually identical to Padfoot until they sat side by side.

The really strange part was the fact that Tony didn’t _have_ blue eyes and black hair, but green eyes and brown.

But it hadn’t mattered.

Tony had been (relatively) safe the entire year and the Trio went home on the train, secure in the knowledge that they would see him again for the wedding.

The wedding that Harry was still waiting to be taken to.

Despite not knowing how long he’d been on the floor, Harry now knew that SH was really late.

‘Maybe I should go to Mrs. Figg’s,’ he sighed. There was nothing else for it, he supposed. The trick would be getting his trunk down the stairs without waking anyone.

He was just looking around for the last time before getting up, when he heard a faint noise on the stairs above.

‘I guess they were just running late, after all,’ he looked up with relief. The faint noise continued a few steps toward the bottom and Harry hurriedly opened the door to climb out. He hadn’t been in his room, so maybe SH thought to look downstairs.

He made sure to dust himself off before turning the light back on and presenting himself at the bottom of the stairs, curious to see what kind of person SH was.

He blinked at the empty space in front of him.

‘That’s odd,’ he looked around. ‘I could have sworn someone was on the stairs.’ Thinking that SH wore an Invisibility Cloak like his, he called softly. “Er, SH? Are you there? My stuff is upstairs, so I can be ready to go when you are.”

No answer.

Harry shone the light in front of him, but nothing moved. “Hello?” he climbed up a few steps thinking that maybe SH had gone back to his room, but he heard something in the kitchen before he got far.

SH could move pretty fast or something. Harry knew that Dumbledore said that no one could use magical means to get in – much like Tony did to his flat – so maybe SH moved fast and quiet all the time. Maybe it was a Witch?

He heard that noise again and headed for the kitchen.

“SH?” he stood next to the cupboard door and tried looking into the kitchen from the hall, shining his light the full length of it. There would normally be light coming in from the streetlights outside, but they’d burned out over the last two weeks and no one could get in touch with anyone who could fix it. His Uncle had tried.

And it hadn’t just been on their street, either, but all over the neighborhood.

While Harry hadn’t been there the last time the bulbs had needed to be changed, his Aunt had blamed new bulbs that were changed from the ones that had been used for years. There was some kind of new regulation or something that said that the new line of bulbs had to be used. Evidently, the bulbs blew out every six months or something.

Harry slowly crept to the kitchen door and looked around. There was moonlight coming in, but it wasn’t full, yet, and the last time he looked out a window, he’d noted clouds starting to roll in.

“SH?” he stepped in further. “Hello?” he passed through the kitchen and into the living room. “Did Moody or someone put you up to this? To make sure it was me?” He wouldn’t put it past Mad-Eye Moody. “I can tell you whatever answer you need to your question.”

He stood completely still in the middle of the living room, ears straining for some kind of sound. He startled violently at the creak on the stairs. At the same time, though, he heard something in the hall upstairs.

He made himself stay when his first impulse would have been to go see if SH was there. While the house wasn’t that old, there had been times in the past where his Aunt had claimed to have heard another person in the house. His cousin had, too. He had never experienced it himself, since he was either already dead asleep in the locked cupboard or was with Mrs. Figg.

His Uncle kept telling them that the house settled sometimes.

Harry didn’t know what to believe, but maybe it was settling now.

He whirled around as he heard another noise in the kitchen. “Hello?”

‘Okay,’ he told himself, trying to calm down. “Maybe SH is a prankster like the twins are. Nothing to get riled up over,” he swallowed. The back of his neck prickled slightly and he uncomfortably remembered the night he, Hermione, ‘Agent’ the dog and two others visited the woods during Spring break.

There had been an odd moment when their Muggle lanterns had gone out suddenly and, while that wasn’t the case here, he shivered slightly as he remembered how blind they’d been.

He was sort of blind here, too. Harry was no longer sure he wanted to be down here by himself. Last time, it was different because he’d been part of a group. Here, he was alone.

He swept the torch beam around and found nothing but empty space. There was a prickling along the back of his neck that made him think that he was being watched and he’d finally decided to go back upstairs when he thought he saw a flash of white as he moved to the stairs.

“Hello?” he paused, calling a little louder. “SH?” he went toward where he’d seen the flash and ended up back in the kitchen.

Maybe his getting worked up over finally being able to leave was making him think about seeing things that weren’t there. That had to be it, right?

“Um, I’m going to get my things now and –”

He went rigid as he felt that prickle again, the one that said someone was watching him. He strained to see his shadowed surroundings as he moved the torch light around. “I-I’ll be back, then,” he turned for the stairs and thought he heard a noise on his left before he took a step. He illuminated the area and found nothing there.

Something was going on, he knew it. Maybe it was something to do with magic? He would make SH check when he found them.

Or maybe the darkness was finally getting to him.

Feeling unsettled now, he wetted his lips as he kept his eyes on the space in front of him as he slowly started moving to his right and down the hall back to the stairs. Glancing that way, he did a double-take when he realized the cupboard door was open and flicked the light to check.

“I thought I closed this,” he swallowed as he reached out and pushed it closed again.

He startled as he thought he heard a shoe scuff the floor near the sink. ‘Oh, thank Merlin!’ he hurried back to the kitchen, thinking someone was there, but he started getting just a little freaked out when he came back to the empty space.

“But… I just heard someone,” he breathed a little harder to keep himself calm. Someone had to be messing with him, right?

That – that’s all it was.

Or – or something magical? Yes.

That … could also be a possibility.

He jumped slightly as something hit the oven.

Something was there.

He knew something was there.

His eyes went from one end of the kitchen to the other, heart racing as he took a step back. Gripping his torch – left hand shaking slightly -, he also took his wand from his pocket and gripped it in his right hand. He had got in trouble for using magic in self-defense before Fifth Year and he probably still would even if his birthday was so close, but he had no idea what was going on right now.

He really wished SH would get here already so they could figure out what this was.

He took another step back and was about to open his mouth when his mind suddenly went blank as something cold and hard pressed against the back of his neck.

 “I do not advise making another move, Mister Potter,” a German accent rasped from behind him. “It could very well be your last.”

* * *

 


	2. Sherlock

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stop. Go to NCIS Lunchdate on my profile and read it. You will know why next chapter. Ktnxbye

“ ** _Give_** _me that, ya freak_!”

Harry just barely registered the familiar voice over the blood pulsing in his ears.

“I told you to find him, not send the poor guy into cardiac arrest!”

Harry was still trying to figure out what was happening when a posh British accent sniffed in response.

“Hardly. That is a metaphorical hyperbole. Mr. Potter is much too young to have a cardiac event, and in any case, I assure you that your young friend’s heart can handle a lot more than you believe it can.”

“… Ignoring your tone – that, to me, sounds disturbingly like experience –”

“Of course it is.”

“Sherlock, you can’t just go around insinuating that you killed someone just to see how much shock their hearts can take.”

“…”

“I’m going to ignore that, because I can actually see that happening.”

“It was a miscalculation.”

“Part of an experiment. Sadly, I’m not the least bit surprised.”

Harry finally remembered how to breathe. His lungs greedily sucked in precious air and his gasps suddenly caught the pair’s attention.

“Harry? Hey, you alright? Harry?” a pair of warm, familiar arms wrapped around him and let him collapse against the solid form of Tony DiNozzo. “Hey, easy, I got you,” he was vaguely aware of being lowered to the floor, just happy that someone he knew and trusted was there to make everything alright again. “Sorry for Curly Top, here. He’s got a warped sense of humor.”

Harry wasn’t sure how long they sat there – him clutching tight to his friend, Tony’s hand soothingly running down his back and a quiet conversation going on above him as he breathed -, but he eventually calmed enough to pull away.

“Alright, now?” Tony’s familiar green eyes studied him with concern as a pair of sharp grey watched from above.

“Yea,” he nodded, heart calming as his mind and sense of awareness rebooted. “What are you doing here, anyway? You’re initials aren’t SH. It was on the note I got.”

“‘SH’?” Tony echoed, looking up at the other male with him, who stared back. “One day,” Tony covered his eyes on a heavy exhale. “One day, I swear to Merlin I’m going to snap and kill the man. Harry,” he turned back to him with a warm, reassuring smile. “I was going to get you and made the mistake of bringing this one along. His name is Sherlock Holmes and he must’ve switched his note with mine when I wasn’t looking. He’s a Muggle I know. I told you a little about him during the Cup, remember?”

“Something like that,” he nodded, before looking around nervously as he remembered not ten minutes ago. “Tony? Er, could you check to see if there’s someone else here right now?”

“Why?”

He hesitated. “It’s … it might be nothing, but I thought there was someone here.”

“And you want to know if it’s magical,” he nodded. “Alright, let me up.”

Harry and Sherlock watched him wave his wand around, before moving to sweep the living room.

“I guess… I should go get my stuff, then?” he glanced at Sherlock, who was closely studying Tony as he moved around with a shadowed look of concentration.

“Already taken care of, Mr. Potter,” he shook his head slightly.

“Oh. Okay, then.”

They stood awkwardly for a moment before the other spoke. “I apologize for earlier,” Harry looked up to see sharp grey eyes dart away from him, dark curls in a frenzied halo around his angular face.

“That’s alright,” he shook his head. “No harm done.”

The older man nodded.

Tony eventually wandered back to them with a frown.

“Did you find something?” Harry wanted to know.

“Yeah, something. I don’t think it’s got anything to do with what you may have witnessed though. Gonna have to double check with Dumbledore, though, before I do anything else.”

Harry started slightly as Sherlock cleared his throat, tapping his wrist.

“Yeah, I get it. Time to go.”

“Did you really get everything?” Harry asked as he followed them to the door.

“It was all in your room, right?” Tony nodded. “Hedwig’s not here, though.”

“Yeah, I don’t know where she is. She left a few days ago.”

“Hm. She probably beat us to the Burrow, anyway.”

Harry took one last look around before smiling slightly. “I don’t know how much I’m going to miss this place,” he told them, “but I know it won’t be much.”

Sherlock unlocked the door and let them out. “I couldn’t wait to leave, either.”

“And your Archenemy still knows where you are,” Tony huffed as they made their way to the street. “Archenemy. I still don’t believe you have one.”

“We had strong words over your treatment,” Sherlock told him. I am not fully incapable of having…”

“The word is ‘friends’, Curly Top. And sure you have friends. There’s me and Watson, Angelo and Mrs. Hudson. Hooper and Lestrade and you already won Mi over somehow. You’ve just got Ron and Harry left.”

“Hermione?” Harry blinked, this the first time he’d heard of it. “She knows you, Mr. Holmes?”

“Sherlock, please, and I did, in fact, meet Ms. Granger just a few short weeks ago.”

“Near the end of June,” Tony dragged Harry closer with an arm around his neck. “Don’t trust him with the time. You’d end up thinking you were early, only to find out later that you were three hours late.”

“It wasn’t important, anyway,” he flicked a hand, walking on Harry’s other side.

Harry listened to them, just glad he was safe and on his way to the Burrow. He really only noticed it was quiet when he saw Sherlock walk ahead. “Does he know where we’re going?”

“Yeah. Hey, listen,” Tony slowed them down. “Remember back at the house, you said you thought someone else was downstairs with you? I’ve been thinking about it and I don’t think you’re crazy, but I _do_ think it’s in your head. Now, there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s known that what you experienced isn’t unusual for young Magical kids coming into their majorities. When you hit seventeen, your magic doesn’t stop growing until you do, but even then it would still grow.”

“So, it’s normal?” he slumped against the Italian in relief.

“Yeah, but remember. You and Mi are the only two that still have to turn seventeen. It could be her instead of you.”

“Ron didn’t say anything about hallucinating on his birthday, though,” Harry frowned as he tried to think back.

“I said it wasn’t unusual, not that it happened to everyone.”

“How did you know about it, then?”

“Well, my friend Booker, actually. The four of us were staying Pin’s house for the first month of our last summer and Booker’s birthday is toward the end of June. Which I always thought was interesting since she likes fall and winter, more. Anyway, about a week after school, Booker knocks on the door of the room that me and Pin shared when we all stayed over. She had Sparky by the collar and begged us to let them sleep on the floor. We thought Booker had a nightmare or something, so we told them it was alright. Two nights later, they hadn’t gone back and Pin told them that there was a reason they had their own room. It surprised us when Booker _refused_ to step foot there, so – like many things since we became a quartet – we all went there to show her that there was nothing wrong.”

“Oh,” Harry nodded thoughtfully. “So, what happened?”

“She screamed so loud that the Dean was ready to knock some heads together when he barreled in to see Booker trying to drag me and Sparky down the stairs and out the door. The Dean ended up sitting us all down and explained what Booker was going through. Sounds to me like you’re going through the same thing.”

It was nice to talk to an adult who didn’t blow him off and gave him a straight answer. And it did make sense, so he relaxed.

“So, is Sherlock going to the Burrow with us?”

“Uh, no,” he looked vaguely amused at that. “I don’t know if the Burrow can handle him, yet. No, actually, we’re going to drop him off in a foreign country somewhere and pick up Palmer, Mac and this other Wizard who also works with NCIS, but… it’s a complicated relationship. His name’s Marty Deeks and I hope you don’t mind me inviting him along. He’s a Muggleborn and I thought it would do him some good to meet up with Mi.”

“Okay,” Harry nodded. He had a feeling that there was more to it, but it wasn’t his place to ask. “Where did he go?” he suddenly realized that Sherlock was gone.

“Waiting for us at the Apparition point,” he ruffled Harry’s black hair. “Don’t worry about it. We’ll get you to the Burrow faster than you can say, ‘Vatican Cameos.’”

* **


	3. Deeks

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please make sure to read NCIS Lunchdate to understand how Tony met Deeks.  
> Happy Fourth!

The sun was setting in Los Angeles when they arrived just off a jogging path after leaving Sherlock in Japan.

“And you’re sure he can get back okay?” Harry fretted. It took some time to warm up to Sherlock, but he wasn’t bad when you really took a moment to really watch him.

Anyone who dove after Tony like that off a train platform couldn’t be that horrible.

And Sherlock had told him to keep an eye on Tony before they left. Harry decided that the ‘Consulting Detective’ couldn’t be bad if the older Brit threatened him should grey eyes find even one scratch on the Italian.

At least one person in the Muggle world looked after Tony and Harry could never fault Sherlock for that.

“He’ll be fine,” Tony waved him off. They continued following the path – meeting a few enjoying the cooler weather with the sun going down – until they found themselves in a large clearing where a large fountain took center stage. “He’ll meet us here, then we’ll all head to Boston.”

“Who’s in Boston?” Harry tilted his head as Tony sank down to sit on the rim of the fountain, coins shining on the bottom of it.  “Mac or Palmer?”

“No, they’re actually at the MNP waiting for us,” Tony shook his head. “I also have to pick something up, but it shouldn’t take long. Oh, yeah. Before I forget,” he pulled a small notebook out of his pocket. “I talked it over with Mi and we agreed that this would be easier than a piece of paper. It’s about our relationship,” he handed over a blue pen, too.

“Right,” Harry nodded, writing his name and watching it flash red before changing to black. His eyes caught Sherlock’s name as well as Agent Donners’. “You or Hermione told Sherlock?”

“You didn’t really get to see what he could do, but trust me. He was going to find out by himself eventually.”

“Hm. Does anyone else know?”

“Yeah, one,” he leaned closer, “but only because he’s a freaking _Vampire_ and they can tell sometimes.”

Harry couldn’t claim to know any, but nodded anyway. “So, is Mr. Deeks here yet?”

“I don’t see him,” Tony looked out over the kind of crowded clearing as he returned the notebook to his pocket. “He’s got blond curly hair, he’s about so high with blue eyes and he should be wearing something blue.”

Harry clambered up onto the fountain rim and looked around. It was about ten minutes later that he finally found someone who fit the description. “Is that him?” he pointed.

Tony looked in that direction and hopped up from where he sat on the rim nearby. “Deeks!”

“Hey!” the tall, lean blond wore sunglasses on his head as he practically skipped toward them. “Sorry I’m late.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Tony smiled widely at him. “I brought a friend who’s going to the Burrow, too.”

Harry hopped down right beside them and stuck out his hand when the blond turned to him. “Hi, I’m Harry. Nice to meet you.”

“Deeks,” he had a firm grip. Right up until he got a look at Harry’s trademark. “Uh,” his grip went lax as he paled, wide blue eyes locked on his lightning bolt scar.

“Breathe,” Tony shoved him on the fountain rim and pushed his head between his legs. “Deeks, breathe. Are you listening to me?”

“Is he alright?” Harry hovered nearby in concern. Guilt was also mixed in because he’d never really had someone almost faint meeting him before.

“Yeah, he’ll be fine,” Tony sighed, crouching down and using their legs to cover his summoning a water bottle. “Deeks, this is Harry. He had a Muggleborn for a mother, right, kiddo?”

“Yeah,” he nodded vigorously, not sure what was going on but following Tony’s lead. “Mum was the only one who had it in her family. Dad didn’t care, from what everyone’s told me.”

“And remember I told you about Mi?” Tony prompted, easing the blond up so he could drink some of the water. “She’s Muggleborn, too. And the Weasleys don’t care. I guess the Delacour side won’t either.”

“Fleur wouldn’t, for sure,” Harry recalled his fellow Champion, now having an inkling as to what was wrong. “Yeah, Mr. Weasley’ll probably keep you and ask you loads of questions.”

“I’ll even tell you who to avoid, if it comes to that,” Tony added. “We just need to pick up two more people before we end up at the Burrow, okay?”

“I think we need to visit someone in Boston first,” Harry reminded.

It took a few moments longer before Deeks was stable enough to sit without help.

“Mr. Potter, uh – ”

“Just Harry,” he shook his head. “It’s alright. Really.”

“He’s just a normal sixteen year old,” Tony nodded, standing up. “Evading authority figures to break the rules.”

“You didn’t get tossed into Azkaban because of it,” he pointed out. “If we hadn’t found your mobile – leading us to America -, we’d probably still be looking for you.”

“And I would still probably be hiding under your nose,” Tony grinned. “Ready, Deeks?” he let a hand fall onto the other man’s shoulder.

“Yeah,” he thought about it. “I… I guess.”

“To Boston, then,” he helped the blond up. “Harry’s going to get a kick out of it.”

They set off on a different trail than what they used to get there and Harry smiled slightly as he caught the blond watching him.

“Tony didn’t really tell me anything about you,” he told him as Tony wandered up ahead. “But I can tell I’m going to like you.”

“Thanks,” Deeks hesitantly smiled back and Harry got an idea.

“Do you know anything about Hogwarts?”

“I know it’s a boarding school for eleven to seventeen year olds,” Deeks mused. “And there are four Houses, right? My school wasn’t big enough for Houses. We went by colors.”

That kind of sounded like something similar, so he nodded. “It’s kind of like that. Tony went to Norman Creswell.”

“NCIS?” he whistled. “Man, Tony,” his blue eyes glanced up toward where the Italian was. “I don’t know if that’s good or bad… Tony?”

Harry looked up with a frown, finding where his older friend used to be a moment ago. Empty trail greeted him. “Tony?” he immediately glanced around, concern starting to twist his insides as Deeks finally made it to where the Italian had been the last time they saw him.

“Well, I definitely know he was here,” the blond exchanged glances with him. “Wonder where he went.”

Harry’s eyes caught the bushes nearby and he started poking at the branches. “Tony? Are you in there?”

“What?” Deeks raised a brow as he started doing the same. “What would he be doing in the bushes?”

“I dunno,” he lifted a shoulder. “Seems like a good place to start.”

For lack of any other option, they started poking around the bushes and Harry was just about to call on the radio he’d remembered in his pocket when he noted the jogger nearby.

The jogger was kind of shorter than him, with really short hair and blue eyes that seemed lighter than Deeks’. He was probably in the middle of his jog and was curious to see him and said blond trying to find Tony.

“Deeks,” he looked over to where the older Wizard was shaking a bush, feeling slight trepidation when the jogger started to approach them. “Deeks – ”

“Lose something in the bushes?” the jogger adopted an amused look on his face as his stopped a few feet from them. He certainly didn’t seem to find it easy to smile, but Harry had the distinct impression that it was in his eyes.

“Yeah,” Deeks answered absently. “Our ride. I don’t know where we’re going next and Harry –” the blond suddenly went rigid, slowly turning to look at the jogger with wide eyes, kind of like the twins when Mrs. Weasley still had them living at the house. “Uh… H-hi, uh, Callen.”

“Can I help?”

“Uhm…”

Harry watched the two of them staring at each other before clearing his throat. “Deeks? Do you know Mr., er, Callen?”

“Oh, sure,” the shorter man smiled brightly at him. “We work together.”

“I – I see,” he glanced back at Deeks, but the pale blond didn’t seem to be any help. “Well, we should probably be going, then. It was nice to meet you.”

“Where you boys off to?” Callen simply tilted his head.

“To see some… people,” Deeks suddenly found his voice. “I – ah – cleared it with Hetty, so… Don’t expect me back for maybe a week.”

“Well, that must be exciting. Any plans?”

“A wedding,” Deeks hedged, shrugging slightly.

“Give my congratulations to them, then,” Callen nodded. “Well,” he noted the time, not seeming to notice his co-worker’s unease. “I gotta run. Sam’s gonna pick me up soon to go see this movie. I think Kensi’s in and Eric. I’m not sure about Nell, but I was thinking of inviting you and then I find out that you’re off on an adventure already.”

“I called Kensi before I left, actually, so she would already know. Have fun, then,” Deeks waved, climbing out of the bushes and grabbing Harry’s arm to tug him along.

“Wait, Deeks,” Callen easily kept pace with them until Deeks was forced to stop. “You didn’t introduce your friend.”

“Not as such,” Deeks shrugged. “Actually, we just met. But, uh, this is Harry. Harry, this is Callen. Now, we kind of have our own schedule to keep, so… See you.”

“Okay,” Callen shrugged as Harry was pulled after Deeks on the path. “Safe travels.”

Deeks waved as Harry looked back to see Callen wave after them before turning around and returning to his business.

“He’s gone,” Harry piped up, having noticed the blond’s hurry to escape.

“Oh, thank Merlin,” Deeks slowed to a stop. “Sorry,” he released the younger male with a sheepish look, rubbing the back of his neck. “It’s not that I don’t like Callen, I mean, sure, he can be intimidating and lately he’s been acting … well, not like he usually would. I don’t know, something’s going on with him. It started not that long ago.”

A rustle in the bushes was the only warning they got before Tony was suddenly there. “Sorry about that,” he absently ran a hand through his brown hair and extracted a small twig before flicking it away. “He couldn’t know I was here, too. Or there would be questions.”

“Yeah, so let’s get out of here before he changes his mind to come back,” Deeks tugged the other American’s arm.

“Alright, alright,” Tony agreed, tilting his head for Harry to follow. They walked on for a few minutes before he spoke again. “Hey, Deeks? We have a friend who can help with your social anxiety. But you’re going to end up with a hair ribbon.”

Social anxiety? But Harry quickly thought of hair ribbons in association with – “Yeah,” he nodded. “I think AJ’s coming to the wedding, too. She should be there before then,” he told Deeks. “We can get you initiated, if you like.”

“A hair ribbon initiation, huh?” Deeks appeared to like the idea after a moment. “Will I have to walk on hot coals or something, too?”

“Would you like to?” Tony deadpanned with a straight face. “That can be arranged.”

“He’s joking,” Harry assured, pushing at his friend's arm. “And it’s just hair ribbons, honest.”

“Okay then,” Deeks shrugged. “I guess I’m game.”

* **


	4. Old Friends

“I hate side-along,” Deeks swallowed heavily, but Harry was too busy trying to keep his own stomach from rebelling.

“Me, too.”

“Just wait until you can do it for yourself,” Tony stood a few feet away, hands on hips.

“Not anytime soon.”

Tony hurried them along and they were soon exiting an alleyway to be herded down a few blocks to come to this beautiful old house.

Harry and Deeks were directed to sit on the stairs as Tony went on up and disappeared through the door he left half open.

It was a quiet night, clouds obscuring the sky, and Harry calmed enough to stand again. Deeks was feeling better, too, standing with a groan.

“Think we should go after him?” Harry wanted to know, watching the door.

“Well, he didn’t tell us to stay here,” Deeks shrugged.

Harry climbed up the stairs first, waiting for any sign that Tony was coming back for them, but ended up at the door before long.

“Hello?” he pushed the door open slightly with his head, green eyes taking in the somewhat Spartan décor. There was a fireplace, a loveseat, a sofa, some lamps, some vases… It was like a regular house that seemed to have little material to work with in a big space. “Tony?”

“I guess we can just go in,” Deeks was at his back, slowly following him in and closing the door behind them as softly as he could.

There were stairs on their right, but Harry didn’t hear anything upstairs.

Through the living room, the kitchen sported a rather rickety table and mismatched chairs that kind of reminded him of the Burrow’s kitchen and Harry rather thought it wouldn’t take much to make this place rather homely.

It was as he was looking through the kitchen that he realized that someone was standing on one side of the door, watching them curiously from around the doorjamb.

“Uh, hello?” Harry smiled at the brown eye before its owner revealed itself to be a young man about his height or slightly taller, brown hair cut short and a nervous smile twisting his mouth.

“H-hi,” he waved, Deeks turning to look at the newcomer. Well, maybe this was someone who lived here, so… “Tony went upstairs. He’ll be back in a minute. Um,” he cast around for something to do or say. “You guys want tea? It’s just, I made some and I didn’t know which one you might like, so I decided to get this herbal thing this morning after my shift at the hospital because Tony called and said he would be dropping by with some friends of his and I would… guess you’re them. It smells nice…”

“I could go for a cup,” Deeks immediately smiled, looking as harmless as possible. Not like Harry thought he needed to make an effort, anyway. “Harry?”

“Yes, please,” he nodded.

“Right. Sugar?” the other wanted to know, turning back to the kitchen and fussing around. “Oh, you can have a seat anywhere. Just, uh, not on the footstool. Aidan needs to do something with that.”

“Why am I always the one to do that stuff?” Harry startled badly at the voice on the stairs, looking up to see Tony and another man watching them from behind the rail.

“Uh, because. Every time I try doing it, you automatically jump in and shove me out of the way.”

“I do not,” the newcomer dismissed, dark eyes watching Harry and Deeks with interest.

“Yeah… you do. Tony, you’ve seen him do it, right?”

“I hate to agree with Josh on this one, Aidan, but I remember vividly a certain winter afternoon where you all but tossed me out of my room in order to fix my dresser drawer.”

“That’s a lie,” ‘Aidan’ huffed, turning to scowl at Tony. “I did not toss you out.”

“Well, whoever it was certainly acted a lot like you. Oh, Josh,” Tony hopped down the stairs. “We need to start wrapping things up here, so, anytime you’re ready for that tea.”

Josh came out with a tea set and offered some to Harry as he settled hesitantly on the sofa and to Deeks on the loveseat.

“It does smell good,” the blond offered, stirring his cup. It and the cup Aidan picked up were part of the same set, but the ones that Harry, Josh and Tony chose were not.

“The cups were from Aidan’s side of the agreement,” Tony explained to Harry as he settled next to him. “He and Josh rent this house.”

“It’s home,” their host shrugged modestly. “So. Maybe the time will go by a little faster if we talk about ourselves.”

“I don’t know, Josh,” Aidan shook his head from where he melted against the window. “They won’t be here long enough.”

“Yeah,” Tony sent an apologetic look at the younger man. “We’re just waiting on your other roomie. And then there’s this little thing about the Floo.”

“We _are_ going to use the fireplace,” Deeks let out a groan, one that Harry completely agreed with.

“I don’t much like it, either, but you’ll have to take it like the Wizards you are,” Tony told them.

“So they are, huh?” Josh straightened.

“Yeah. You already met me. Harry, here, is in his last year at school. Deeks works at a different NCIS office.”

“What school did he go to?” Aidan wanted to know.

Tony sipped his tea as he winced. “NorCal.”

Aidan sucked in a sharp breath. “Damn.”

“And I’m going to take a guess here,” Josh raised a finger as he sipped his own cup. “That’s not good.”

“Well, Muggleborns aren’t… The community as a whole is.. fairly welcoming,” Tony told him. “But, as you can well imagine, there’s always that powerful group who hates anything to do with those not ‘pure’ of blood. In some cases – like NorCal –, they might as well be classed with Werewolves.”

“There are places like that in America?” Harry couldn’t exactly explain why the news surprised him, but it did.

“Unfortunately.”

Then again, he thought bitterly, there was no reason to believe that there _weren’t_ places like that in the world.

“But,” he vaguely heard Josh speak up as he sipped his tea, “could Werewolves go to school? I mean, not at Hogwarts, but at other places?”

“Well, maybe homeschooled or with tutors. There are, of course, the public schools that run just like Muggle public schools, so there is that. But again, not exactly a friendly atmosphere. At least Muggle Werewolves can have something of a normal life.”

“What?” Harry blinked up at Tony, who was smiling slightly in return. “What do you mean, ‘Muggle Werewolves’?”

“Yeah,” Deeks echoed. “There are those out there? I thought it was just the magical kind.”

“Well, if that were the case,” Tony shrugged, “then I guess we’ll have to call Josh something else, huh?”

The young man seemed taken aback at the stares that Deeks and Harry leveled on him. “Well,” he shrugged self-consciously. “I am. The Muggle kind, that is.”

Harry felt the smile on his face. Josh seemed like Moony in quite a few ways and there had been a fleeting familiarity that Harry had just brushed off, but maybe that was because it had reason to be there.

“I know one of the magical kind,” he revealed to the room. “It’s my dad’s old mate and he’s pretty cool. He used to teach one of my classes at Hogwarts before someone,” and there was not a doubt in his mind _who_ , “let slip about him being a Wolf and got him sacked.”

“That’s terrible,” Josh ducked his head as Aidan sighed.

“No matter how you look at it,” Harry looked over to see him staring into his tea cup, “Wolves don’t seem to have it easy in either world. And it’s the ones like Josh and your friend Moony who end up the innocent victims dragged into it.”

“But they have friends who help them make do,” Tony softly added, an arm drawing Harry into his side. “Moony has Padfoot and us and the others; Josh has his two roommates and me. Not like Aidan, here, is any better, though,” he smirked at the other man’s laugh.

“Josh has me, too,” Harry clearly spoke, green eyes meeting Josh’s surprised brown. “And Ron and Hermione, too.”

“Thank you,” he said after a moment, a smile stealing across his face.

Deeks just sighed, watching them. “I don’t know. I mean, I know that not all Wolves are bloodthirsty creeps,” the blond shrugged, “but I can’t exactly claim to know any of them very well. So… You can have my support, too, if that will mean anything, but…”

“You are a different case,” Tony shook his head. “We have to get you to enjoy Magic before you go picking sides.”

Harry finished his tea and smiled slightly at the last dregs as he savored the last drops. That was when he realized that the atmosphere had changed. It didn’t have a certain feel to it, but there definitely was a change.

Tony must have felt something in his body language because he turned to look down at him. “Something wrong?”

“Do you feel… I dunno,” he grimaced. “Something in the air?”

“Oh, that must be the other roomie. Say hi, Harry.”

He was about to open his mouth when a familiar voice – right next to him, and yet all around – dutifully echoed, “Hi, Harry.”

Harry’s green eyes widened as delight raced through him. “Sally?”

The black Ghost shimmered into sight with a big grin, still in the same outfit of black leggings and purple sweater top thing he’d last seen her in. “So, to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit to my humble haunting ground?” she settled on the other end of the sofa expectantly.

“We’re actually here for your fireplace,” Tony told her.

“And you were waiting for little old me? I think I feel important.”

Harry was certainly glad they did since the last time he’d seen her was last summer. “It’s good to see you again.”

“Right back at you,” she flicked a hand at him as opposed to actually touching him since her hand would more than likely go through him anyway. “So,” she flicked some curly hair over her shoulder as Harry was given a toothy grin. “How’ve you been? Anyone catch your eye? Handsome guy like you wouldn’t have any problems keeping some girl happy. Or guy," she shrugged."I don’t judge, you can tell Aunt Sally all about it.”

Harry could tell his face was burning – even if he didn’t need Deeks’ chuckling at him – even as he struggled to answer.

Thankfully, Tony took pity on him and spoke in his stead. “Yeah, you could say he’s caught someone’s attention alright,” he drawled. “Poor guy’s _obsessed_ with the kid.”

Harry immediately started laughing at the reference to Riddle, something only Tony could joke about.

“Tony,” Sally pouted, brown eyes sparkling in amusement. “I was serious.”

“So was I.”

“And how have you been?” Harry got his laughter under control.

“Eh, can’t complain,” she lifted a shoulder before puffing up proudly. “I got a job with Tony’s MNP office, my pick of cases, and trips to NCIS whenever I want.”

“That’s great,” he wasn’t sure what kind of job she could have, but she was delighted and he was happy for her.

“She’s a Special Liaison with the MNP,” Josh explained. There was an odd look on his face as he glanced back and forth between Sally and Harry.

“When I was hanging out with Tony last year,” Sally took over, “we found out that I can see certain things that even other spirits can’t! Right, Tony?”

“Yup. Vance has her as a special Agent who can take the cases she wants. Ghosts can see things that Wizards and Witches can’t, so she’s a very important part of whatever team she goes in with.”

“And there’s other cool spirits, too,” she added, preening under Tony’s praise. “There’s Maya and Clover and Sentinel – what’s his deal, anyway? – and Mark and Jay and his brother and Salem – I still think she’s some sort of office myth, because I have yet to see her no matter how many times I haunt the file room and – ”

“You know Jay and Le?” Harry blinked, remembering well his Spring trip to America.

“Oh, he said something about meeting you when I saw him last. I think he might have a little, teensy crush on your lady friend.”

“She’s not my ‘lady friend’,” Harry sputtered, laughing slightly. “She’s one of my best friends.”

“Speaking of which,” Tony heaved a sigh as he stood. “We kind of need to get going.”

“What? And I just got here, too!” Sally sulked.

“We’ll come back,” Harry promised, standing with Deeks and Josh, handing his cup over to Josh as the Wolf practically grabbed it from him before scurrying back to the kitchen. “And maybe with Ron and Hermione.”

“It better be soon,” she threatened half seriously pointing at him. “Or I’ll haunt you all year.”

The group sort of unconsciously followed Josh into the kitchen where he stuffed two unopened boxes of the kind of tea that Harry just had into his arms.

“You don’t have to give me all your tea,” he shook his head as he tried to give them back.

“Oh, no, no,” he shook his head right back. “It’s more than fine. You like tea, don’t you, since you’re British? I couldn’t possibly drink all of it myself.”

“Take it, kid,” he looked over at Aidan, leaning against the door with an amused look on his face. “Josh has a habit of buying more than one box at a time. Which is how we ended up with a tea collection in storage.”

“How can anyone buy just _one_ box?” the brunette in question wanted to know. “Not natural. And so what if I bought six boxes? Tony said buy tea. I’m OCD, okay? I get nervous.”

“You might want to try decaf,” Deeks advised, surprising a laugh out of Aidan.

“I don’t know,” Sally shrugged. “Decaf makes him more squirrely.”

“It does _not_.”

“It kind of does,” Aidan agreed, which made Harry realize something.

“Hey, er, Aidan?” he questioned. “You can see Sally, too, right? Are you a Wizard, too?”

“Well, Harry,” Sally shrugged. “This is an interesting trio of roommates we got going here. Josh, here, is a Werewolf, Aidan’s a Vampire and as for me? Well, I’m dead.”

“A Vampire?” Harry studied Aidan, who seemed comfortable under the scrutiny. “I’ve never met one before.”

“Aidan is one of the good ones,” Tony nodded.

“Biased,” Aidan scoffed. “Probably from babysitting you in school.”

“You needed some excitement in your life.”

“Not anymore. I get it plenty now.”

They went on in a manner that wasn’t technically dissimilar from what he noted Tony’s interactions with Sherlock, but it was more of a pair of old school friends than anything else.

“Man, I wish I could eat popcorn,” Sally commented on his left. “It’s just really cool to watch them like this.”

It didn’t really take that long before Tony and Aidan came to some kind of impasse, allowing them to finally get going to the MNP offices.

“Oh, here, let me get a bag,” Josh fussed, catching sight of the tea boxes that Harry still wasn’t quite sure what to do with.

“Well, thanks for stopping by,” Sally smiled somewhat sadly at Harry as Tony led his old friend back into the living room. “I would like to give you this giant hug, but… For obvious reasons, I can’t.”

He nodded slightly, but it really would have been odd to just leave without trying to do _some_ thing, so he reached out a hand to touch her arm and sighed as it went through, leaving a cold, tingling feeling in its wake.

“Yeah,” she nodded back.

Deeks was nearby when he saw that and dragged Harry into a tight hug that was sort of like Tony’s, but kind of loose. “That’s for Sally,” he explained, letting the younger male pull away. “So we don’t have to feel at loose ends for good byes.”

“But I’ll probably see you again,” she told them, Josh absently stuffing the tea into a small plastic bag as he kept giving her and Harry odd looks, the four of them going over to stand by the fireplace.

“Thanks for having us,” Deeks clapped Josh on the arm.

“Thanks for visiting,” he smiled slightly.

“Come back and see us,” Sally invited. “Don’t be strangers.”

Aidan simply nodded before Tony took a small jar of Floo powder from him and offered it to Harry.

“I think you already know to say ‘Donners Office, MNP, DC’, so you can go first.”

Harry heaved a resigned sigh before scooping up a handful and carefully stepping into the fireplace.

“See you later!” Harry heard Sally call before the room disappeared in a flash of green flame.

* **

It didn’t take but a minute before he was sliding out of a familiar fireplace.

He managed to wobble upright to get out of the way just in time for Deeks to slide out after him.

Helping the blond up, Harry moved him out of the way in case Tony was sliding out next and stood next to him, dusting himself off as he turned to look around at the office he remembered from earlier that year. He didn’t see anything different, but did spot the coatrack from the last visit near the door again.

Only he and Deeks were in the room and the blond was soon dusting himself off as he looked around for the first time.

“So,” he commented, coughing a few times. “This is the office of Agent Donners.”

“Yeah. I thought someone would be here, though,” he frowned.

“Maybe something came up.”

It wasn’t for long, much to his relief. A few minutes later, they heard a knock on the door before a familiar face peered around the edge.

“Hi, Mac,” he relaxed at the Witch as she beamed at him.

“Good to see you,” Colonel Sarah “Mac” Mackenzie greeted, opening the door a little wider to slip in. Her brown hair was just long enough to brush her collar as brown eyes sparkled at him. “Palmer’s on his way and Tony’s already come in a different way.”

“That explains what happened to him,” Deeks commented. “We were starting to worry.”

Harry hadn’t spent as much time with Mac as he did with Palmer, but let her hug him anyway. She was still a friend who helped last year, too.

Mac and Deeks introduced themselves to each other as Jimmy Palmer finally managed to arrive.

“Hi, Palmer,” Harry shyly hugged him, familiarity overriding decorum. The other Wizard carefully hugged back, Harry spying Mac’s smile at them. “Are you doing okay?” he pulled back.

“Yeah. Overworked, though,” he shrugged. “This wedding’s like a godsend.”

“I will definitely be relaxing this week,” Mac added. “And I understand we’ll be staying for your birthday, too, Harry.”

“Really?” he blinked. It was the first he’d heard of it, but far from unwelcome. “Cool. You’re more than welcome to attend.”

Palmer said hello to Deeks as Mac absently reached out to dust Harry off a little more. “No matter how many times these chimneys are cleaned,” she smiled slightly, “people always come in with soot.”

“Hey, Harry,” a different voice drew his attention to the teen who just arrived. Jay was a different Ghost than Sally, since he seemed attached to the MNP, but Harry also met him during his trip to America.

“Hi, Jay,” he beamed. “Good to see you, too. And I thought you were going to get rid of the coatrack,” he gestured toward it. “What happened?”

“It’s more complicated than we thought,” he shrugged.

Eventually, introductions were done so that everyone knew everybody else and Jay ended up having to leave so it was soon Harry, Mac, Deeks and Palmer left.

“Tony’s going to be here in a few minutes,” Mac assured. “He just needed to go over a few things with Donners elsewhere.”

Harry nodded, kind of impatient to get going, but he was also content to wait since he hadn’t heard from Palmer in ages. Not since Tony’s stay in the Hogwarts Hospital Wing, anyway.

“So, Harry,” Mac turned to him. “Excited to go to the wedding?”

“I’ve never been to a magical wedding before,” he told her.

“It’ll certainly be a treat.”

“And you’re almost seventeen,” Palmer pointed out with a smile. “How does that feel?”

“Incredible. I’m going into the Aurors.”

“Not my area,” he shrugged slightly. “I’m more of the Herbology field than Defense.”

“You certainly showed that against Carlin and Aniston,” Mac playfully prodded him with a finger.

“I’ve been trying the advice you and Tony have been giving me, but you know how it is at NCIS.”

“I like Charms,” Deeks offered. “I’m not so bad at Herbology, either.”

Harry spied a familiar Quick Notes Quill sneaking in and smiled. “Hello, Rodger,” he greeted, the Quill – sensing that the jig was up – moving over to tap him on his nose with the feathery tip. “No, I didn’t forget about you.”

When he and Hermione had finished some paperwork for Donners in relation to the marriage bond, they each received a Quill which they named. They had had to leave their Quills when they returned to the UK and Harry vaguely remembered telling the two that they would visit.

When Ron completed his paperwork, he got a note explaining that he would get one for himself one year from his majority. He’d just shrugged and noted that the American Magical Agency was as slow as the Ministry was in the paperwork department.

“Is that a Quick Notes Quill?” Deeks watched thoughtfully.

“Yeah, Hermione has one, too. They’re going to be ours when we get into the Aurors.”

The Quill, sensing more attention, decided to study Deeks in turn.

Tony finally arrived as Rodger the Quill dove in and out of the blond’s clothes, eliciting almost hysterical laughter at the tickling sensation, the rest of the room laughing at them.

“Everybody ready?” Harry found him by the door, grinning at the scene.

“Yeah,” Palmer answered, shooing the sulking Quill back to Harry.

“Floo’s ready,” Mac reached into Donners’ desk for the powder jar.

“Okay,” Harry nodded, before turning to console the nuzzling Quill against him. “I’ll be back. Remember, you’ll be coming to the Ministry with me after this year.”

“You know,” Tony commented as they watched the Quill wave its tip sadly before leaving the room. “I kind of feel sorry for it. Mi’s Quill has been laying on top of various bookshelves in the research room and I think it’s depressed.”

“Maybe we can visit again later so that she can see it again,” Harry suggested as they clustered around the fireplace. Mac held the jar out for Harry and he sighed as he took another handful of it.

“I guess we’ll see what the year holds,” Tony exchanged looks with Palmer and Mac, the only other two who knew what had happened in its entirety. “Well. Come on. To the Burrow!”

* **


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PLEASE READ:  
> Part two of today's double post in honor of July Fourth. Did you read the last chapter first?
> 
> Also, I really can't believe I have fans for this series. Especially the seven or eight users who *consistently* end up on the kudos list first. THANK YOU!! ^-^
> 
> A head's up: there will be a companion/side story to this called Sweet Danger, but it won't be for a bit yet. I'll let you know when it's up.
> 
> I have already started on the Trio's Seventh Year, called The Secrets of Hogwarts, but after this story is the Eureka story that will be part of this series called Just Another Day. No skipping.
> 
> (On that note, please read What Family Is filed under SC:R)  
> ((And please be familiar with Eureka while you're at it, or it won't make sense.))  
> (((Why yes, this is one of those series that you literally have to read them all in order for it to make any sense at all. XD/ DX)))
> 
> There will be laughs, there will be tears, there will be shivers racing up and down spines (you will know) and - more importantly - there will be friends there to help every step of the way.
> 
> Hope I keep you all guessing as the series moves forward.

Harry slid out of the Weasley fireplace and was pulled out of the way by Ron.

His best friend immediately shuffled him to the side, where Hermione waited and the three spent a moment clinging to each other in a group hug that Tony joined a moment later.

“It’s so good to be together again,” Hermione smiled up at their oldest friend as they separated.

“You have no idea,” Tony beamed back.

Palmer, Deeks and Mac were dusting themselves off when they turned back to the room.

“Ron, Hermione,” Mac grinned, holding her arms out for Hermione who gladly took her up on it.

“Wotcher, Palmer,” Ron pumped his arm.

“How are you two?” Palmer returned.

Hermione spied Deeks standing off by himself and walked over to introduce herself, Harry watching her practically adopt him on the spot.

“I think I feel kind of sorry for him,” Tony snickered beside him. “You have to admit, Mi’s kind of… well, overwhelming sometimes.”

“Yeah,” he hated to agree, but it was kind of true.

Ginny Weasley, Ron’s sister and the youngest of the family, walked in and Tony waved at her. “Hey, Harry and Tony,” Ginny grinned at them. “I hope you’re ready for this.”

“We brought back-up,” Tony waved a hand over at the other Americans and introductions were made.

Afterward, Ginny turned to Harry. “Gabby’s already here. But she’s upstairs in my room. Hermione’s rooming with us, too.”

“That’s Fleur’s younger sister, right?” Tony recalled.

“Yeah.”

Mrs. Weasley chose that moment to bustle in and Harry figured that she already knew that there would be more than Tony coming over from America because she looked over the group without batting an eyelash. “Welcome to the Burrow! Please, do not hesitate to enjoy yourselves while you’re here. My name is Molly Weasley, and I will do my best to ensure your comfort.”

“You don’t have to go that far,” Deeks shook his head.

“Nonsense. It’s not every day that we have so many visitors, but I am more than confident that we will all have a marvelous time. Harry, dear, how have you been?”

“Pretty well,” he smiled back. “Can’t wait for everything to happen.”

“And it will certainly be eventful,” she nodded with a welcome smile. “Now, then,” she clapped her hands. “We’ve added more rooms, so you lot have the first pick since you’re the first ones here.”

“Actually,” Tony broke in. “I asked Dumbledore if it was alright to have alternate accommodations. From what he told me, a lot of the guests are also expected to have tents put up outside, so I thought it would help if we weren’t underfoot all the time.”

“You’re going to spend two weeks in a tent?” Ginny wanted to know.

“Really?” Deeks lit up. “I can’t remember the last time I went camping.”

Harry had to smile at the blond’s excitement, Mac and Palmer echoing wholeheartedly. It kind of made him want to join them, but knowing Mrs. Weasley…

Ron and Hermione glanced over at him with knowing looks, probably also thinking that Ron’s Mum wanted them close to keep them from learning anything ‘best left to the Order’.

“I have the tent with me now,” Tony informed them. “We just need to set it up.”

“If the Headmaster has agreed,” Mrs. Weasley reluctantly nodded, “then by all means. Now, if you will excuse me, I must double check the number of guests arriving, so I will let the children take over from here.”

Ginny rolled her eyes as her mother immediately left the room. “She’s been double checking for ages.”

“Well, some drop out at the last minute,” Palmer pointed out. “It’s not unusual.”

“I hope I don’t have this big fuss when I get married,” she huffed, leading them out of the kitchen and through the back door.

“You can hope,” Tony pointed out, lighting his wand, “but you won’t get it. You are, after all, the only girl in the family.”

“What time is it?” Deeks seemed surprised to see how dark it was already, not wasting time as he also lit his wand.

“0200,” Mac answered, her and Palmer doing the same.

“Unbelievable.”

Harry supposed so, having seen the sun just setting when they left.

Ginny went on ahead, fielding questions from the others about the house and property while Harry, Ron and Hermione hung back to walk with Tony.

“It really is good to see you again,” Hermione tucked into his side.

“It’s great to be here,” Tony squeezed her as he reached out to tap Ron’s shoulder.

Their pace slowed to let the others walk on and Harry enjoyed the silence in the company of his three best friends. It allowed him to fully relax since he left the train platform at the station in June.

He knew he could trust them and they knew that they could trust him. It was an incredible feeling.

“Oh, Harry,” Hermione spoke after a few minutes. “I don’t suppose you know of any detectives that I can go to if I lose something?”

“You better make it interesting or he’ll say no,” Tony added, grinning as his eyes sparkled in his wand light.

“Yeah,” Harry nodded, getting it immediately. “I hope you’re not scared of heights.”

“I knew you would like that,” Hermione groaned, making Tony laugh.

“Who’re you on about?” Ron frowned at them.

“Sherlock,” Hermione answered. “He’s one of Tony’s friends and I got to solve a case with them earlier in London. I think I told you something like that earlier.”

“He came with Tony to pick me up,” Harry added.

“Oh,” Ron nodded before falling silent.

“He’s really something, isn’t he?” Hermione sighed.

Tony narrowed his eyes at Ron over her head and slowly released her. “Harry,” he stopped them. “Why don’t you and Mi help with the tent? Mi, you have some experience right? Here,” he gave her a small object that was about the size of a playing card. “Give that to Mac. She’ll know what to do with it. And I think that it’s been long enough that she’s found a good spot.”

* **

Tony watched them go on ahead before he wrapped an arm around Ron’s shoulders.

“I know what you’re thinking,” he sighed. “You’re feeling left out, but I promise you that I am working to change that.”

“It’s alright,” Ron shrugged nonchalantly. “I know they’re the favorites and I –”

He was cut off when Tony dragged him into a hug. “Don’t you even think like that,” he admonished, squeezing him tight. “I don’t have favorites between the three of you. I’ve just been spending time with each of you, one on one. I just have to figure out what to do with you. Hopefully, it won’t involve roof hopping and believe you me. Taking Mi down that route was more upsetting for me than it was for her. I was terrified of dropping her or something.”

“You wouldn’t have let her fall,” Ron hesitantly hugged back. “You wouldn’t let any of us fall.”

“Blind faith,” he shook his head, pulling away with a smile.

“No, it’s not,” Ron insisted. “You wouldn’t let yourself think of it.”

“We’ll see if your blind faith holds, standing on the edge of a five story building with someone shooting from behind you and your only escape is a ten foot jump away.”

“Was that on a case?” Ron wanted to know.

“Maybe,” though Tony knew full well that it didn’t always happen on a case. “C’mon. I think they’re looking for us. Are you okay?” he let an arm wound around Ron’s waist as he turned them forward.

“Yeah,” Ron nodded solemnly before breaking into a smile. “Just hurry up and find something for us to do. I can’t wait.”

“Me, either,” Tony grinned back.

Ron let his own arm wrap around Tony’s shoulders with a sigh.

It was wonderful with his three best friends where he could see them.

He’d been worried about Harry and Tony – Hermione not so much, even though being Muggleborn (and a girl) drew its own worries -, what with one being the target of a powerful Dark wizard and the other needing to rely on people of questionable trustworthiness to keep him alive.

Now that they were all in one place, Ron and Hermione didn’t need to worry about others ‘dropping the ball’ when it came to Tony and Harry.

Ron enjoyed the Italian’s closeness to him as they eventually found the others near the orchard’s field boundary not that far from the swimming hole, which was set a little farther back in the orchard itself. It was a good distance to the house, but not very far from the other guests – which Ron figured was the point since Tony, Palmer and Mac were MNP and they could be needed in the coming days. Deeks seemed somewhat jumpy, but maybe it was because the blond was in a new place with new people. Not everyone was happy to jump through the Floo network to a new place at the drop of a hat.

“Hey, lovebirds!” Deeks spied them ambling toward the yellow tent already set up. “What kept you?”

“Planning our dream date,” Tony deadpanned, Ron stifling a smile as he was pulled closer. “I was thinking the Alps, he was thinking Alaska.”

Palmer shrugged as he stood next to the entrance flap. “I’ve been to the Alps,” he offered. “It was during a Herbology project in Fourth Year.”

“Mr. Overachiever over there would live in every corner of the world if there was an interesting plant involved.”

“Well, yeah,” Palmer shrugged sheepishly. “Herbology. Duh.”

Ron stepped back as Tony released him and headed for Deeks. The two put their heads together, which left him with Palmer.

Ron didn’t have anything against Palmer – liked him, as a matter of fact -, the other Wizard having been there for Tony when he didn’t have to be since he technically wasn’t part of the team. It said a lot about his character and Ron decided that he didn’t mind him being around, which Palmer would probably be anyway since Palmer was friends with Tony.

Mac, too, but Ron didn’t actually know that much about her to really draw a conclusion.

“Our stuff is here already,” Palmer awkwardly pointed at the rather large looking tent. “You can go in if you want. Harry, Hermione and Ginny are already there.”

“Okay,” Ron nodded, ducking inside to find himself in a small hallway that connected two areas of the tent. Deciding to go left, he found himself in a sitting room with armchairs, sofas and poufs to sit on, tables of all shapes and sizes accompanying them.

Ron had grown up with this kind of thing, so he wasn’t as impressed as Harry or Hermione would be. It was still interesting, though, to see the inside of different tents.

Harry and the others were in the small kitchen-like area, set in the back of the tent and away from the sitting area, gathered around the table there. Ron heard Tony, Palmer and Deeks behind him as he walked over to take the seat between Harry and Ginny.

“This is nice,” he heard Deeks comment.

“And the sleeping area is on the right side of the tent,” Mac piped up from across the table as she sat on Hermione’s other side.

“But I’m too keyed up to crash now,” Deeks told her as he stood nearby, hands in pockets. “Probably since it’s not even bedtime for me back home, yet.”

“Well,” Ginny sighed, “we could probably finish beating up the rugs.”

“Yeah,” Hermione nodded. “We finished all the small ones last week. The bigger ones are left.”

“One of a few things that we need to do before the wedding,” Ginny took the list out of her pocket. “Then we have to clean the inside of the windows, do all the bedrooms and polish things and pick up any apples that have fallen…”

Mac grabbed it from her and shook her head as she looked over it. “Incredible,” she shook her head again. “Leaving all these things until the last minute. What in Merlin’s name was she _thinking_?”

“I have a wild theory,” Tony drawled. Ron, Hermione, Harry and Ginny exchanged looks in agreement.

Mum hadn’t been quite as sneaky as she had thought, keeping them busy enough to not bother the Order. She had had Ginny and him doing things to keep busy, but he knew that she had been waiting for Hermione and Harry to arrive to bring out the big things.

“Ginny,” Tony continued. “You said that it was only the bigger rugs left, right? Why don’t we do them now? It would help us burn off energy and, with that out of the way, we can work on doing all the other stuff on the list.”

“Which lets us get a head start on these chores,” Palmer nodded. Ron liked where this was going.

“So we can do what we want,” Ginny agreed.

“But you don’t have to do our chores for us,” Hermione cringed as she spoke up. She was giving them an out and, while Ron didn’t much like it, they really didn’t have to do things that they didn’t need to.

“We’re doing things _with_ you,” Palmer corrected, leaning his palms on the table to smile at them all. “What kind of friends would we be if we just let you do these things by yourselves?”

Ron felt an answering smile cross his face. Not everyone would volunteer to do these things even though they didn’t have to.

“That’s decided,” Mac looked up with a smile. “Let’s get to work.”

Ginny all but ran out of the tent with a whoop at the prospect of help. Ron felt like doing the same, but he stayed with Tony, Harry and Hermione as the others followed his sister and Tony set some alarms up before heading that way.

“So,” Ron spoke up. “How did you meet this ‘Sherlock’ bloke, Hermione?”

Ron genuinely listened, noticing Tony relaxing slightly and feeling a warmth at the idea that Tony was actually worried enough about Ron’s feelings to, well, worry, Harry joining in for the questions since he hadn’t heard of it, either.

Hermione paused in the middle of telling them of how she and AJ Johnson – another friend of theirs – had met in a dress shop and called Tony’s attention. “I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind sleeping in the house for tonight.”

“Sure,” he nodded. “Why?”

“We would be under one roof,” Ron lifted a shoulder as he and Hermione shared a look. That had kind of been the plan before Tony said that he would be in a tent. He glanced over to see Harry’s face light up in realization and Tony must have picked up on it, too.

“I can do that,” he grinned, green eyes sparkling. It made Ron wonder how often that Tony would get requests just because someone wanted to spend time with him and made a note to do that more.

Even though it was just a relatively short walk to the tent, they were all feeling the separation anxiety and would feel better all in one place.

“Oh, before I forget,” Hermione spoke up. “I have a visitor coming Wednesday. He’s just going to leave the very next day, but I thought it would be alright if he stayed in the tent with you and the others…”

“As long as he doesn’t come after Deeks, we’ll be fine,” Tony waved her concern away as they rejoined the others at the house.

There was a pile of rugs and rug beaters by the back door and places to hang them.

“Well, there’s eight of us,” Palmer counted, “and five beaters.”

“I can ask Mum if we have any more,” Ginny volunteered. She ran inside as they hung the first two big ones.

“Tony,” Mac looked over at him. “I think you’ll need to wait a little until we get most of the dust or it’ll bother your lungs.”

“What’s wrong with his lungs?” Deeks twirled a beater in his hand.

“We’ll explain later,” she promised as Ginny came back with some extra.

“Will you be alright doing this, Tony?” Hermione wanted to know, she, Harry and Ron knowing enough about the Plague due to Tony having told them a couple years ago. Ron didn’t like thinking about it.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine,” he insisted. “Really.”

“Okay,” Mac picked up her own beater. “Tony can go last, once most of the dust has gone.”

Everyone picked a side and started beating until Mac made them stop.

“This isn’t working,” she frowned, rummaging in her pocket until she came up with a music radio. “Let’s get these other rugs up, instead. I have an idea.”

By the time she got the radio back to its normal size and tuned into the Wizarding Wireless Network, all the rugs were in place.

“Alright,” she told them. “Pick a side and start beating when the next song starts. Then, when it ends, change to the next side of the rug. Tony, start on a side that’s already been started on.”

They started with the next song.

It wasn’t so bad, Ron reflected. They did well and managed half of what they had before they started getting tired and Mac bid them stop.

“We’ll finish the rest later,” she yawned. “Then we can start with the bedrooms.”

“And the apples,” Ginny added.

“I guess we could do that,” the blond, brown coated American nodded. “But first, I think I’d like a shower.”

“You can do that back at the tent,” Palmer reminded.

“Let’s take care of what we have first,” Hermione suggested.

Once they took the dusted rugs into the living room for his mother to deal with, Ron led Harry back up to the attic where his bedroom was. Ron let him use the loo first – to also wash up a bit – while he changed into his sleep clothes. The players in his Chudley Cannons posters were half asleep, narrowly missing collisions with each other.

Tony showed up with his sleeping bag not long after Ron got out of the loo, Harry trying to find his things. “Here you go,” he told Harry, reaching into the pocket of his sleep trousers to extract a small trunk. He enlarged it for Harry and let him get dressed while rolling out his sleeping bag.

“Mum had us doing stuff before you got here,” Ron told them as he watched from bed. “She waited until you arrived to give us the big stuff.”

“The timing makes sense,” Tony nodded, climbing into his bag. “With the wedding just around the corner, much of the Order is going to need to be around, so meetings are bound to happen.”

“Why does Mrs. Weasley hate us being involved?” Harry sat on his bed facing them.

“I told Mi in late June that the Order is trying to get the three of you killed,” Tony told them, his tone telling them that he still believed it. “Mrs. Weasley still believes the whole group of you are children and that the Order should keep things from you in order to protect you. While that is admirable, it’s a double-edged sword. On the one side, the adults are more experienced and have more resources to get things done. On the other hand, what I don’t think has occurred to them is just how vulnerable they’re making you. Ron,” he looked up at him, “if you wanted to do some damage to another side – and you knew that they were hiding someone -, how would you go about doing it?”

Ron took a moment to think it over.

“Well,” he began, “I would get as much information on the target as I could.”

“Exactly. And what would you do if some of this information came back telling you that the target doesn’t really know what’s happening?”

“I would feed them fake information,” his eyes widened at the realization. “Bloody hell! If the Order sends Harry somewhere, the Death Eaters could set up an ambush!”

“Something like that, yes. It can happen no matter how well prepared people think they are."

That wasn’t something to think about right before bed…

“But remember that prophecy?” Harry shook his head. “Was that why I was targeted? And does the Order know?”

And that was the question, wasn’t it?

“Maybe Dumbledore knows,” Tony sighed, laying on his back to stare at the ceiling. “It’s hard to tell for sure, just how big the circle is. Makes you wonder if the other side knows about it or if it’s just revenge.”

“I’d rather not,” Harry smiled wryly before he lay back on his bed.

“But you’re not joining the Order, are you, Tony?” Ron had to ask, his voice small at the idea that had been bothering him for a while now.

“When would I have the time?” he snorted. “No. And I would advise the both of you to walk away, too. Don’t let them use you against each other. I told Mi to come find me if she thought the Order was going to blackmail any of the three of you.”

“I don’t know,” Harry turned over as Ron turned the lights off. “I really doubt it. They don’t really seem the type.”

“Yeah,” Ron agreed, settling down. “And Mum’ll probably find a way to keep us out.”

“Yeah, but on the off chance,” Tony continued. “You need experience, not protection. Not right after graduation.”

“I can’t wait,” Harry sounded sleepy as Ron yawned. “The three of us can go into the Aurors and we’ll visit you in America whenever we want.”

“Yeah,” Ron agreed, closing his eyes as fatigue took over. “And we can spend the night at your flat and eat sweets and play games… and…”

* **

Tony listened to the boys finally drift off to sleep, his hearing picking up the sounds of even breathing as he remembered his findings at Number Four Privet Drive.

Something just didn’t sit right with him.

His gut had been churning since they left and it had been only luck that Sherlock hadn’t cottoned on to him.

There really wasn’t anything he could do until he spoke to Dumbledore anyway.

He sighed, turning over.

That was really all he could do right now.

* * *

 


	6. Monday part 1

Jimmy Palmer shuffled into the Weasley kitchen in time for a late breakfast.

“Hey, Palmer,” Deeks smiled slightly, already at the table. “Mrs. W stepped out, but said she’ll be right back.”

“Okay,” he nodded, waving his wand for some hot coffee. “Where is everyone?”

“Mac took Gabby – Ron’s new little sister-to-be – and they’re in the garage to find the cleaning stuff. Mrs. W told them it was in there since they couldn’t find it anywhere else in the house.”

“And the others?” he took a sip of coffee, sighing as the caffeine hit his veins.

“Ginny’s upstairs trying to wake the other four up,” the blond shrugged. “They probably should have been up by now.”

Palmer nodded, taking a seat and smiling slightly as a plate landed in front of him, loaded with breakfast. He settled down to eat and found himself really starving. All that running around last night must have done a number on him.

He was just scraping the last of the eggs onto his toast when he noticed Deeks watching him.

When Tony came back from Los Angeles with news of another Wizard, Palmer had been incredibly excited. Abby Scuito didn’t need much encouragement to tell him the general stuff about Marty Deeks, but it had been Tony to really clue him in. He remembered Tony telling him to help keep an eye on the blond during the time they would spend at the Burrow and the unspoken words clearly told him that the blond hadn’t had good magical experiences, but Palmer couldn’t imagine how.

Granted, he was a Pureblood, so he wouldn’t have the experience, anyway. He knew how others were treated and he just couldn’t stand the Purebloods who thought they were better than everyone else. Palmer liked working with Muggles and all the others at the MNP, because all these different people brought so much to the table and there was seldom a dull moment on either side because of that.

That’s why he tried looking at things from different points of view, though Tony was more successful at that, being Mixed.

Palmer didn’t care about lineage so long as their personality was good. Deeks just needed to come out of his shell and Palmer hoped to show him that not all Magical people were ready to condemn him on sight.

“Mrs. Weasley is a good cook, isn’t she?” Palmer smiled.

“Yeah. She’s almost as good as Lynn. She’s a Witch and works in the file room,” Deeks offered."She helps me out, especially when I have to go to the MNP offices. Agent Levy’s a cool chick, but she kind of reminds me of someone I went to school with.”

“Well, that’s good,” Palmer nodded. “I’m sure you’ll make more friends in no time.”

“Yeah. Tony already told Levy that he would be more than happy to hang out with me, and Harry told me something about hair ribbons.”

Palmer remembered that when he had gone to tell the kids the truth about Tony’s disappearance last year. “I don’t _really_ think they charmed those ribbons, but it’s an idea.” There was some kind of story behind it, but Palmer doubted they would tell him since the Trio had adopted Tony and it seemed like something that they wouldn’t tell outsiders.

Palmer was eating a muffin when Ginny came back downstairs.

“No luck?” Deeks asked.

“No. Palmer, you’re some sort of Healer, right?” she bit her lip. “I think something’s wrong with them.”

“Well, they were fine last night,” Deeks frowned, standing.

Palmer crammed the rest of the muffin into his mouth before following Ginny and Deeks out of the kitchen. They ran into Mac and Gabby – who had only found half of what they needed – , introduced themselves to the blonde French Witch and they all decided to go upstairs to see what the problem was.

The girls went to try again with Hermione as Palmer and Deeks went to Ron’s room to wake them up. Unfortunately, Palmer couldn’t find a physical reason for their continued slumber and nothing they did could get them up.

“Nothing,” Mac appeared in the doorway. “Palmer, can you find anything?”

“The only thing I can find, really, is a ridiculous amount of Magical exhaustion,” he shook his head. “That shouldn’t be entirely possible with Tony, never mind the Trio. They haven’t been doing anything.”

“What could do something like that?” Deeks looked between them from where he sat next to Harry on the edge of the young Wizard’s bed.

“The wards,” Mac shrugged. “That’s about the only thing that makes any sense. One of them may have slipped out of place and we know that there are wards up for the wedding, especially with the family of a Ministry Employee at stake. It’s not as unusual as it may seem for a ward to slip from place, but it is very interesting that the wards are affecting Tony and the Trio like this. It must be one of a recent batch if it’s siphoning magical energy like this. We’ll need to get people out here.”

“Mrs. W should be back by now,” Deeks rubbed his eyes. “I’ll go down and check.”

“Alright,” Mac nodded as he left. “I don’t think the kids should stay in the house while this is going on,” she told Palmer as he checked the three again. They were still dead to the world and he wasn’t sure he liked seeing them so still. “We’ll need to bring them out to the tent and they can stay there until after the wedding.”

“I think I agree,” Palmer crossed his arms. Because of the location of Ron’s room, there was more of a chance that this could happen again. Why Hermione had been affected, though, wasn’t quite as clear. That would be for someone else to discover.

The two went downstairs to find Deeks, Gabby, Ginny and five others besides Molly Weasley – one of them obviously a Weasley –, and what looked to be an adult version of Gabby.

“Palmer, Mac,” Deeks spied them. “These are some Aurors from the Ministry with Gabby’s sister Fleur and Ginny’s brother Bill.”

“Hello,” Bill Weasley had a firm grip and a bright smile. “You must be some of Ron’s friends.”

Well, he liked to think so, anyway, already seeing the Trio as some of his friends. “It’s nice to meet you,” Palmer nodded. “Oh, and Congratulations.”

“Mrs. Weasley,” Mac turned to her. “I think that one of the wards may have slipped out of place – ”

“Zat is not possible,” Fleur shook her head. “Experienced Aurors, who know what zey are doing – ”

“There is a term called displacement,” Mac continued over her. “It doesn’t matter if the warders are the _best_ there is, wards don’t care.”

“Some of the best warders put the wards up, my dear,” Mrs. Weasley wasn’t listening as she assured them, “so just put your mind at ease.”

“No, Mum, wait,” Bill held up a hand as he studied them. “I’ve heard of displacement. It happened once to a guy I know. Mac, right? What made you think of displacement?”

“Palmer says that Tony and the Trio are suffering from Magical exhaustion and we don’t understand how that’s possible. Harry and Hermione can’t do magic yet – not to this degree – and we wouldn’t know what Tony and Ron would be using that much magic for anyway.”

“We’ll go take a look,” Bill assured, one of the others going with him.

“I honestly don’t know what they expect to find,” Mrs. Weasley shook her head after them.

“Mrs. Weasley,” Palmer decided to speak up. “It’s been decided that the kids will be in the tent with us until after the wedding, when there aren’t as many wards up.”

“As much as I appreciate the thought, dear,” she shook her head. “I assure you that the children will be safer here in the house. Not that I am doubting anyone’s ability to keep anyone safe,” she hastened to assure, “but the house is the best place for them to be.”

“Well, wait,” Deeks glanced between them. “If another ward slips, who’s to say it won’t do the same thing or go after one of them,” he gestured toward Ginny and Gabby, who were both listening.

“I’ll go,” Ginny raised her hand. It had shaken her when she couldn’t rouse any of them. The last time anyone had touched Tony when he’d been sleeping, Moody had cackled as Kingsley held ice to his eye. Tony, predictably, had been _horrified_. Moody just told him that Kingsley should have known better and that it was his own fault. Sirius had laughed just as hard and Remus Lupin had just kept filling Tony’s cup with tea.

When Ginny had tried by throwing a pillow and preparing to hit the ground, he hadn’t woken up. She wasn’t going to go through that again, so she was going to make the Trio sleep in the tent, no matter what her Mum wanted.

Gabby immediately agreed to go, too. It was clear to Palmer that Fleur was torn between keeping her sister safe and keeping her happy, since it seemed that Gabby wanted to spend as much time with her new siblings as possible.

“Now, Ginevra,” Mrs. Weasley frowned, “there is absolutely nothing wrong with the wards –”

“Mum,” Bill came back to the kitchen, face serious. “Get Dumbledore. Mac was right; it looks like one of the older wards got bumped out of place by some of the newer ones and displaced another. That one’s bending under the ones that we put in place last week, which explains how Hermione’s being affected. She must be sleeping closest to the outside wall. The ward’s also bent under the weight at the roof, also explaining those three. We need to disable that ward and make sure the others are placed where they absolutely _need_ to be and not where we _want_ them to be.”

“And that’s going to take ages,” Ginny nodded. “It’s going to be for the best that we go to the tent, really.”

Bill agreed. “And I’d personally have Tony within arm’s reach, anyway. Italians will do whatever possible to keep those they’ve adopted safe. Almost as much as they would actual family. I’ll trust him with the Trio, Fleur, Gab, Gin – even Dumbledore if I have to.”

Mac told Gabby and Ginny to get their things and they gladly took off while the other two unknown Wizards disappeared via Floo. Bill and his mother had taken themselves off to a corner to argue about having the kids outside the house while Fleur turned to Deeks.

“Do you trust zis Tony?” she asked him.

“I haven’t really known him long enough,” he shook his head. “Mac or Palmer can give –”

“I asked you,” she met his gaze. “Do you trust him?”

“Given the chance to,” Deeks met hers. “Yes.”

Fleur nodded. “Zen, I will say no more against him. ‘e will keep zem safe and will only fail when circumstances are out of ‘is control.”

“And you won’t blame him if something does happen?” Mac studied her.

“I do not blame zose who ‘ave no control,” she gave a nod. “’Arry trusts Tony, so I will leave it zere.”

* **

Within an hour of the displaced ward’s removal, all four of them were downstairs for a slightly late lunch as Ginny gathered all the things that needed polishing.

“That’s unbelievable,” Hermione shook her head. “I haven’t really heard of displacement.”

“I’m actually surprised by that,” Ron yawned. It was rare that Hermione didn’t know about something ages before they did. Tony and Harry were still waking up, noses in their mugs.

“It’s something that happens,” Mac told them. “Most people don’t admit to it because of pride.”

Ron wouldn’t keep it quiet if it meant someone’s safety. They were lucky it wasn’t worse.

Before Dumbledore left, he’d assured Molly that basic wards would be put up so that the bedrooms could be cleaned. The rest of the wards over the top half of the house would have to be redone to make sure the wards would be evenly distributed. The guests would be safe in time for the wedding.

“There won’t be as much stress on the wards after the wedding,” Palmer told them.

“So, now I expect that we’ll be staying in the tent?” Hermione asked. “I was going to ask if we could do that anyway.”

Ron understood the feeling. While it had been nice to find out that Tony had actually been with them the entire time, it didn’t stop the Trio from wanting the Italian close, especially after last year’s scare.

“Today, we’ll be out there,” Mac sipped her tea. “We finished the rugs and we’ll start with the polishing today and get some apples off the ground while they deal with the wards.”

“It would be a lot easier if dresses worked in the same way that a chore list does,” Hermione crunched on a chip. “Fleur still hasn’t found the right dresses yet for Ginny, Gabby, herself or I. We’ll be the bridesmaids and I have to admit, I’ve never been one before.”

“They’ll have a practice run during the reception,” Mac assured.

“Kind of cutting it clos, though, isn’t she?” Deeks raised a brow.

Ron shrugged. From what he understood, she’d been looking since this time last year.

When they finished lunch, the group trooped out to the tent where their polishing skills awaited.

They had brought sleeping things with them and Ron was interested to know that they would be sleeping on the ground, like Muggles would.

Palmer showed them how to set up their sleeping bags.

“Wow, Palmer,” Mac smiled from where she stood by the door. “I’m impressed. Back when I met you, you weren’t sure what a Muggle tent _was_.”

“Tony fixed that,” he told her.

“I’m sorry I did,” Tony quipped from where he moved the Trio’s bags near his. “That was a nightmare. Lucky for Ron, though, I’ll know next time.”

Ron felt a beat of excitement at that. He’d felt left out last night, it was true, but Tony had told him about his decision to spend time with each of them – which Hermione had confirmed – and couldn’t _wait_ to have his own time with the Italian. The four of them were in this marriage together, after all.

So, did that mean Ron had to figure out something to do with the others, too? Why should Tony be the only one to ask them out on dates? Ron bet _he_ hadn’t been taken out on a date before. He was going to have to ask the other two.

They settled in the sitting room and found baskets of stuff from the rooms upstairs.

“It’s a bit too hot to really do anything outside right now,” Harry gamely took the bottle of polish from Mac.

“Do you have swimsuits?” Ginny looked up from her first polishing object. “You know that there’s a swimming hole not far from here.”

“Yeah,” Deeks nodded. “Tony said there was one, so I brought my stuff just in case.”

“We’ll have to go swimming tomorrow,” Palmer found a spot at one of the coffee tables. “After starting with the house.”

“I’m sure there’s a few homework things that we might need to go over,” Hermione mused.

They polished things for most of the afternoon, conversation starting and stopping. With all nine of them going, they soon had all but two baskets done.

“Good work, team,” Deeks looked at the stuff laid out on the long table in the small kitchen area.

“We’ll finish tomorrow, start with the bedrooms and continue with the apples. We’ll fit in swimming,” Mac assured. “We’ve also got a lot of time for that next week, too.”

“One day at a time,” Tony sighed.

Ginny frowned at her empty polish bottle. “Mum usually gets the smelly ones.”

“Tony can’t handle the ‘smelly ones’,” Mac told her. “We don’t want his lungs getting agitated.”

 “You never explained that,” Deeks told her. “What’s wrong with his lungs?”

“I guess it’s time to tell you the story,” Tony sighed.

“The short of it is that Tony had the Plague,” Palmer began.

“...Medieval of you,” Deeks blinked.

What followed was one of the most terrifying stories that Ron had ever heard. And that was right up there with listening to Harry’s story about the Final Task. They heard about the white powder and how Tony had opened the envelope, beginning a chain of events that led to Tony’s lungs being forever scarred.

By the end of it, Harry, Ron and Hermione were practically in Tony’s lap, the Trio shaking slightly at the thought that Tony may never have survived.

Ginny wasn’t far behind, already seeing Tony as an honorary uncle even if her Mum didn’t seem to like him.

“What kind of luck do _you_ have?” Deeks looked sick.

“I didn’t used to have it,” Tony scowled, “before NCIS.”

“Hey, about that teammate,” he frowned. “I never saw her at the lunch.”

“What Dom is to your team,” Tony sighed, “Kate is to mine.”

“Oh,” Deeks winced.

“You’re okay now, right?” Hermione almost choked Tony in a hug. He’d told them the bare minimum of the story during Fifth Year, but none of them imagined that was the story he was hiding.

“You just need to be careful with him,” Palmer advised. “His health can become compromised more easily than it used to.”

“I guess Tony and Harry are more alike than we thought,” Ginny mused. “They both survived something that’s killed everyone else.”

They thought about it in silence before Mac shook her head. “It’s about time for dinner,” she stood. “We should head out now.”

Ron frowned at her thoughtfully as they packed everything away for the night and left the tent.

“You know,” he mused as the rest of the group headed for the house and Tony and the Trio hung back. “I don’t think I’ve seen her wearing a watch or looking at the time or anything.”

“Yeah, I wondered which of you would notice first,” Tony had an arm around both Harry and Hermione, who walked on either side of him. “Me and Palmer have long suspected that it’s a magical ability.”

“Oh, like you and Sirius being Animagi and Harry being a Parselmouth!” Hermione exclaimed with a smile. Right up until she realized what she’d just said. “Oh, no. Harry, I’m so sorry,” she flinched.

“A Parselmouth, huh?” Tony had to stop as Harry went rigid. “Interesting.”

“Is it?” Ron asked weakly.

“Yeah. So, where were you when I was in Australia?” Tony frowned at Harry. “Both me _and_ Eames would’ve loved to have had you along for that trip to hell.”

“So, you’re not upset?” Hermione wanted to know, voice small.

“It’s a useful thing to have,” he shrugged. “You know, one of my classmates after the Institute had it.”

“What happened to them?” Harry didn’t look like he wanted to hear the answer. Ron didn’t know if he wanted to, either.

“Well,” Tony thought about it. “Last I heard of him, he was doing quite well in Florida’s Reptile Relocation Unit.”

“I don’t know how Americans do things,” Hermione told him, all three relaxing, “but being a Parselmouth is a sign of a Dark Wizard.”

“Well, yeah, that may be,” Tony agreed, “but not all of them are horrible. Besides, Florida has about two others last I checked. It’s an ability that’s useful and some realize that. I heard from Sparky some time ago that there’s even some kind of movement trying to help ‘good wizards with Dark abilities.’ The definition of ‘Dark’ doesn’t quite mean the same that it used to, especially when there is a need for some of those abilities.”

“Maybe I should move to America, then,” Harry mused.

“When we’re Aurors,” Ron grinned, “we could work with you sometimes.”

“You’d have to survive training first,” Tony pointed out.

“But you’re really alright with Harry being a Parselmouth?” Hermione wanted to be sure.

“It’s more than fine, Mi,” he tugged her closer. “The whole group of us are something, aren’t we? Moony can turn into a wolf, Padfoot can turn into a dog, Mac can tell time, Harry can talk to snakes and I can predict the weather. Anyone else have anything to add?”

“You can _not_ ,” Hermione frowned at him. “No one can.”

“He really can,” Harry agreed. “I’ve seen him.”

“Try me,” Tony challenged.

“You can’t,” she insisted.

“We’ll see about that.”

* **


	7. Monday part II

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Halloween!  
> (post 1/2)

Harry washed his hands in the bathroom by the study.

He’d been kind of worried about Tony finding out that he was a Parselmouth, but it turned out that he didn’t need to worry. Tony didn’t mind and Harry even thought that Tony wanted him to be proud of his talent.

He had already known about Tony’s ability to predict weather, so it wasn’t a surprise. Hermione still didn’t believe it, but Harry knew it was only a matter of time.

Oddly enough, Ron had kept silent about his thoughts on the matter.

Though, he reflected, Ron might have heard about the ability or something at some point in his life. The redhead could even be making sure of his thoughts before telling, which was actually a bit mature of him.

Harry knew what he would do with Tony’s ability and suddenly wondered if they could have a small degree of it through the marriage bond. It was an interesting thought.

“Harry, dear,” Mrs. Weasley called, rapping on the door. “I don’t mean to rush you, but everyone is already in the kitchen.”

“Okay,” he called back. After wiping his hands, he headed out of the loo and passed first Gabby, then Tony, on his way to dinner.

He found the others already at the table, probably already picking their dishes from the groaning spread, and slid in next to Ron with Palmer on his other side.

“I’m probably going to end up a few pounds heavier when I get home,” Deeks commented, practically drooling at the choices waiting to be eaten.

“When I get home, I’m going to find a cheeseburger,” Mac sighed. “Not that there’s anything wrong with Mrs. Weasley’s cooking, but still.”

“Aw, c’mon, Mac,” Deeks glanced her way. “Live a little.”

“There’s nothing wrong with wanting a cheeseburger,” she told him from where she sat between Ginny and Hermione. “And the last time I ‘lived a little’, I ended up stranded in the back country of Romania. Again.”

They started eating when Tony came back with an odd look on his face. He waved off any concern, however, in favor of delving deep in his thoughts while absently eating his food.

He wasn’t so much involved inside his head, however, that he didn’t notice Deeks and Hermione scrutinizing his every bite.

“I’m not gonna keel over,” Tony dryly commented. “Especially not in the middle of eating or before dessert. Oh, hey, Ginny, do you happen to know where the spare lightbulbs are?”

“It blew out again?” she huffed. “We’ve been having problems with that light since July started.”

“I can get it,” Ron volunteered, but Tony waved him off as Gabby came back from where she’d taken herself off to before dinner.

“No, it happened while I was there, so I’ll fix it.”

“Okay,” Ginny shrugged. “It’s out in the shed, near the back wall.”

“But there’s loads of stuff, so be careful,” Ron warned.

Harry could believe it. Mr. Weasley had a habit of collecting Muggle objects and Merlin only knew what was in his collection already.

Gabby caught his eye about midway through the meal and smiled widely at him. Harry nodded back with his own smile and couldn’t help comparing her, again, to the younger Witch he’d saved during the Second Task. She was growing up to be a wonderful person, though quiet. He noticed that she didn’t seem very confident in her English and couldn’t help mixing her languages up. Harry wondered just how much thought Mrs. Weasley put into the idea that her new daughter was to help them with the wedding chores, since she’d been somewhat reluctant to let him help the first time he’d been at the Burrow.

Near the end of dinner, Mrs. Weasley bustled back in from wherever she’d been, and checked on them for a few minutes – mostly to get dessert ready – before Flooing out to presumably let some Order members know it was alright to come over.

“She’s been going in and out,” Deeks noted, finishing up with his dinner.

“Well, of course,” Mac looked up with a shrug. “She’s hosting the wedding of one of her boys. I would, too.”

“Just imagine when Ron or Ginny get married,” Palmer smiled slightly.

“Yeah,” Deeks turned to them expectantly. “Any word on that?”

“Not until _long_ after graduation,” Ginny snorted.

“I don’t know,” Tony drawled. “Ron, I hate to say this, but it’s still very early in our relationship to think that far.”

Harry almost choked on his mouthful, trying to stifle his laughter, but Hermione just giggled about it, Ron snorting into his peas before solemnly replying, “Don’t worry about it. I don’t think I’m ready for it anyway.”

“Stop sounding so serious,” Mac chuckled. “One of these days, someone’s going to actually take you seriously.”

“But wasn’t that the point?” Tony shrugged. He winked at the Trio, who had to stop eating before they choked.

* **

Tony followed Ginny’s directions before leaving the kitchen to go to the shed set a bit away from the house.

Before leaving out the front door, however, he made sure to duck out of sight in order to observe the group’s interaction.

More specifically, among the kids.

The conversation that he had accidently overheard earlier had made him begin watching Gabby more closely, a sense of righteous anger simmering in his stomach.

Back before dinner, Tony had been washing his hands after using the bathroom when the light had gone out. He hadn’t minded, having changed many a bulb in his life, and had been about to open the door when he heard Gabby apparently rattling off what she’d done today.

He’d first thought Fleur had snuck in or there was some kind of Quick Notes Quill writing in some kind of diary since she was getting better at speaking English and understanding it, but probably had yet to start writing it.

He wasn’t sure if he should interrupt to save them both the embarrassment of him having listened to her rendition of their afternoon, but the surprising presence of Mrs. Weasley’s voice stayed his hand.

Having interrogation experience, he recognized the Weasley matriarch’s line of questioning and had been _shocked_ at the realization that Molly Weasley hadn’t been encouraging Gabby to spend quality time with Ginny and the Trio to foster sibling ties like he’d been thinking – but she’d been urging the blonde to _spy_ on them.

Tony had slipped out at that point – the pair having moved further into the study – and escaped to the kitchen to stew about it.

Now, he watched thoughtfully as Gabby struck up a conversation with Hermione, who seemed to immediately jump into it. After a minute, he snuck out of the house to pace just outside the front door.

How could Molly Weasley force not even an eleven year old to spy on her future siblings?

It hadn’t been said – or Tony hadn’t heard it -, but he had this horrible suspicion that it was because Molly Weasley wanted to make sure that nothing ‘Order business’ related had gotten out.

That… that was _not_ okay.

Not using a child to keep tabs on what the hell her future older brother and older sister were talking about. As well as her sibling in laws, which was neither here nor there.

What kind of message was _that_ sending? And why in Merlin’s name would Gabby agree to it? For her sister?

The slightly crimson haze left after a few moments when Tony realized that he should probably get going. Striking off for the shed, he scrubbed his hair.

‘So, I have this information. Now, the question is, what do I do about it?’

He made his way to the shed and huffed, wand light bouncing against his surroundings with every step he took. “What is she holding over Gabby? The kid doesn’t seem like she would take things lying down like this.”

Alright. To be fair, Tony had only known the kid for about 24 hours, so he didn’t really have available experience to go on, but it still rankled him that sweet Mrs. Weasley could use someone like this who – apparently – didn’t know better. Though it probably shouldn’t have surprised him with her Crusade to keep the kids in the dark, which probably spread to others in the Order, and what he’d seen and done – especially with what happened last year.

‘I guess we aren’t really all that different from Muggles,’ he scowled as he opened the door.

He frowned slightly when he found that the garage didn’t have a working light, but shrugged it off as being accustomed to using the Muggle way. It took him some time to make his way to the back wall, passing the time chuckling as he mused how his Boss, Jethro Gibbs, would organize the pile of mess invading the place.

When he finally found his way to the bulbs in the back left corner, he immediately grabbed the right wattage before turning to leave.

He got five steps before he startled violently at the crash on his left. He whipped around, bringing his wand up to illuminate the area.

“Well,” he swallowed, trying to calm his racing heart. “Of course something would fall. Maybe I _should_ let Gibbs loose out here, then maybe Arthur would actually find something.”

He shook his head and took another step, pausing when something flashed out of the corner of his eye. “It would be just my luck if there’s some kind of explosive in here,” he groaned, remembering the side case of robbery he and Sherlock looked into with Mi over the summer. Tony spent a long moment eying the spot where he spotted movement, but even though looked, nothing flashed again.

Thankfully, nothing started beeping or ticking, either.

Not entirely reassured, he resumed his trek back to the entrance and stopped with a frown as something entered his hearing. It was faint, but there was a tapping noise reminiscent of metal tapping each other coming from his right. He looked around and sighed when he again saw nothing there besides him and his apparently overactive imagination. ‘I’m gonna go before I spend the night out here, looking for noises that wouldn’t mean anything anyway.’

Nodding, he steeled himself and marched to the door, not letting himself turn as he caught another flash or heard another noise. He froze, however, when he heard a footstep right behind him.

Thinking one of the kids was taking Harry’s Invisibility Cloak for a spin, he pretended not to have heard it and grinned to himself as he wondered who was following him. Not one of the Trio, surely, who knew better than to let themselves be heard. That left Ginny, Gabby or even Deeks.

He hummed as he slowed to a stop just inside the entrance. “I should probably fix the light before I get dessert. If this is Deeks, I should probably warn you that your pie is forfeit if I get there before you do.” He tilted his head as he heard footsteps behind him and frowned.

“Okay, you’re not Deeks. You don’t sound that heavy.” He jumped at the slightly breathy giggle at his elbow. “Ah ha! Gabrielle Delacour! I’m surprised at you,” he turned with a grin, bringing the wand around to see. “I’m surprised you even know what an Invisibility Cloak is, but your family must have at least two, as rich as they are.”

He didn’t receive an answer, so he decided that she’d finished and was heading back to the house on silent feet. Shrugging, he turned back in that direction and started walking when he suddenly heard breathing on his left. “Ginny?” he glanced over, pausing mid step. It didn’t sound like Gabby and it sounded slightly higher than Mi. His green eyes warily scanned the area, but couldn’t find the source before it stopped.

“Okay, I’m starting to get a little unnerved here,” he confessed, turning slowly in a full circle. “Let’s get back to the house, okay? You won. Or whoever it was that put you up to this.”

He felt a prickle on the back of his neck, suddenly taking notice of the silence around him. Weren’t there frogs or crickets or something when he got out here?

_“Tony.”_

He startled violently as he jerked away from the voice next to his ear. “Alright, this isn’t funny anymore,” he absently rubbed his ear, jerkily looking around from one side to the other. “I’m going in and … and –”

Footsteps were coming toward him from the shed behind him. But… it sounded kind of heavier than before. He breathed, heart starting to race as the steps came to a stop at least two feet from him.

“Is there someone behind me?” he would’ve heard the second set of footsteps, but he’d been fairly sure that he started as the only one out here.

There was something almost tangible in the air as he heard soft breathing behind him. “Alright,” he licked his lips as his spine stiffened. “This is all very creepy, so… you know… I’m just not going to look –” he jumped in place and shut his eyes as a puff sounded next to his other ear. Gritting his teeth, he shook his head. “I’m going.”

He took a step and someone behind him took a step, too. A few echoed steps later, he breathed and – eyes still closed – transferred the bulb to his other hand before carefully reaching back and fully expecting the silvery feeling of an Invisibility Cloak –

* **

Hermione had been at the Burrow for more than a week and it had been wonderful to see everyone again. And though it was nice seeing Ron again and re-connecting with her… well, ‘sister-in-law’ at this point… it was really Gabby whom she’d been interested in getting to know.

The blonde was going to be her new sister, after all – even if she didn’t know it -, so she was excited to spend time with her and Gabby appeared to be interested in getting to now both her and Ginny in return.

Ginny, however, wasn’t having it.

The redhead didn’t like her future younger sister and she gave no illusions otherwise. Hermione hadn’t liked the idea either, at first.

But then she remembered how AJ Johnson had warmed up to her and she’d adopted Harry, so that would make AJ her younger sister as well. Since Hermione was still oblivious as to what being ‘married’ actually meant at this point, she had decided that AJ must have seen something in her that she grew to like and that was what had happened with Gabby.

The blonde had looked so dejected at Ginny’s rejection, that Hermione had decided to befriend her in order to show her that not all of her future family was unwelcoming. Her hope was that Ginny would follow her lead, but it seemed to have backfired.

When she’d talked to Ron about it, he’d had no answer for her, except to say that Ginny had seemed to get along with AJ alright. Ginny had even jokingly called AJ Harry’s ‘little sis’.

Maybe she knew that AJ was an orphan and had latched onto Harry who was one, too.

Hermione couldn’t help wondering if Ginny’s dislike of Gabby was the result of her crush on Harry. Sure, it had simmered down, but there was always that possibility.

“Hey, Hermione,” Deeks waved a hand in front of her face. “Pass the cookies, okay?”

“They’re called biscuits over here,” Mac reminded.

“No, I want cookies. You know, those flat things with chocolate in them.”

“The biscuits?” Ginny reached over for the plate.

“The cookies.”

“No, biscuits,” Harry told him.

“So, what do you call biscuits?”

“Biscuits.”

“It’s confusing, isn’t it?” Palmer smiled sheepishly. “It took the longest time for me to understand what Dr. Mallard wanted from me regarding ‘tea and biscuits.’ I thought he meant _actual_ biscuits!”

Hermione had been shaken from her thoughts, but she didn’t mind, smiling at everyone. Deeks, she reflected in her tea, was a very funny person. He’d been somewhat jumpy at the beginning, but he was comfortable with them now.

She took another drink of tea –

and almost inhaled it as a wave of magic swept past her.

“What the bloody hell?” Ron coughed.

Mac and Palmer were already tearing out of the kitchen and through the living room before Deeks and the kids were up and after them.

Hermione got out the front door just in time to see Palmer colliding with Tony. Both hit the ground and Tony scrambled backwards, eyes wide and rapid Italian coming out of his mouth. Mac tried to catch him as he moved back and finally lunged to grab his shirt front as Hermione and the others reached them.

“Tony. Tony,” Mac knelt half on top of him. “Hey, look at me. Look. At. Me.” She moved her head to connect gazes with the terrified Italian. “Tony, you can’t talk to me in a language I don’t understand, alright? What happened?” Mac held his gaze until Tony closed his eyes and breathed.

“Wow,” Palmer was helped up by Harry and Ron. “The last time I heard Tony go Italian like that was about two years back or so. Someone thought it would be funny to take one of Ziva’s heritage myths and actually recreate it. Tony’d been so spooked, I didn’t hear a thing in English from him for hours.”

“I bet Agent Gibbs was upset,” Hermione remembered the former Marine and she could imagine how upset he would be if his Senior Field Agent was out for even an hour.

“Actually,” Palmer adjusted his glasses. “It was Director Vance who almost killed the other agent. Apparently, the myth had some kind of instruction embedded in it and the guy accidentally summoned it and – yeah, so that happened…”

Tony finally managed to get his English thoughts in order and explained the odd noises and footsteps and he’d been _certain_ that someone had been messing with him via Invisibility Cloak, but he’d tried looking or it and nothing was there, but the breathing had _still been there_ and –

“Tony, I think I know what’s wrong here,” Mac interrupted before he could start hyperventilating again. “You’re Italian.”

“… Glad we cleared that up,” Deeks quipped, having brought his tea with him.

“I meant,” she threw him a look, “that Tony’s obviously adopted the Trio and it is not at all unheard of for Italians to be affected by young members of either blood or chosen family coming into adulthood – especially since the two youngest of his small family are doing so within three months of each other.”

“Um, I had a similar experience last night at my Aunt’s house,” Harry admitted. “Tony told me something like what you just said.”

“Which might mean that the magic in you is influencing the both of you – but Tony’s going to get most of it since Hermione’s also going to turn seventeen,” Mac told him. “It’s affecting you by yourself, on one level, and you and Hermione are both affecting Tony, with you bringing more than she is.”

“Sorry, Tony,” Ron told him.

“Nah,” he waved him off. “I sort of knew what I was getting into, but I had no idea it was going to be so… _real_.”

Eventually, Deeks and Ginny went to go find another light bulb as Tony was brought in on account of him having shattered the last one. When the group got back to the kitchen, they found Tonks, Remus Lupin and Sirius Black – as Padfoot – just getting in, Mrs. Weasley following them.

“Wotcher, mates!” Tonks raised a hand, hair turning Weasley red. Then she got a look at Tony. “What happened to you?”

“Scared the hell out of myself,” he rubbed his eyes, arm around Hermione’s shoulders.

Moony chuckled. “I wondered when that would start manifesting itself if it did at all.”

Hermione explained what Mac had told them and she was surprised that Mrs. Weasley was surprised at this new information.

“Well, Italians of any country don’t really hang out with Brits,” Palmer mused. “I think part of that is because Brits think that they are better than everyone else.”

“Not all,” Mac corrected. “I think mostly politicians hate each other, claiming superiority. There _have_ been in-roads with that nightmare of a relationship, but it’s too early to tell.”

“Yes, with the new Minister,” Remus nodded, but Mrs. Weasley cut that off before they got far and Hermione exchanged looks with Harry and Ron. That was a telltale sign that something was going on.

Mrs. Weasley set dessert out and Padfoot – wearing Agent’s tags, which made Tony, the Trio, Mac, Palmer and Ginny smile to see – made himself at home near Harry.

After dessert, Tonks and the two Marauders had to leave, but they promised to come back sometime Wednesday morning to visit.

Hermione noticed Tony pull Moony aside to ask for the Headmaster and Moony told him that he would let Dumbledore know that Tony was looking for him.

“What was that about?” Ron had noticed, too.

Ginny was changing the light bulb with Palmer’s help and Mac had taken Deeks and Gabby back to the tent.

Tony hadn’t seemed to care that it had been in his head, because he didn’t feel ready to leave the house just yet. So, they found themselves in Ron’s room, some of the wards having been replaced since that morning.

Tony lounged on the floor between the beds as Ron sat with Harry and Hermione lay on Harry’s bed, all of them relaxing together in the silence. She didn’t have homework and had helped Ron and Ginny with theirs since she got there, in between chores. Harry had done all his and had turned it over to her to double check. She needed to do that before bed tonight.

“Harry,” Tony spoke into the silence, the small candle on the bed table providing the only light.       member when me and Sherlock came to get you? You had heart failure after he pulled that trick on you and you told me that you thought someone else was in the house with you.”

“Yeah,” he sat up. “Why?”

Hermione turned onto her stomach to look down at Tony as he spoke.

“I checked the house,” he rubbed his eyes. “Nothing was there, but I looked into the wards and… found something interesting.” He sighed deeply. “They weren’t weakening like they should have been now that you are two weeks from your majority. If anything, they appear to be reinforced.”

“What!” Ron sprang upright as Hermione sat up with a gasp.

“You don’t think they want me to go _back_?!” Harry looked panicked and Hermione felt that, too.

Both Harry and Ron had told her everything that horrible family had done to Harry over the years – even after he got his letter. What had horrified her even more was that they told Dumbledore and the Weasley parents and probably half a dozen others and _they were blown off_.

“Tony,” she shook her head. “Harry can’t go back!”

“Do you _know_ what the bloody hell those Muggles did?” Ron scowled, punching his mattress.

“I have a very strong hunch,” Tony snarled, green eyes on fire. “That’s why I need to tie Dumbledore down and talk to him.”

“It’s because of the blood protection,” Harry scowled. “Since Aunt Petunia’s the only blood relative that Mum has left…”

“And we can’t tell anyone of them about the four of us,” Hermione looked at the three of them. “Not unless we _really_ trust them.”

“Or they’ll want to break it,” Ron shook his head. “It’s over a year, now, but it’s Harry so they’ll try.”

“The hell they will,” Tony growled, magic slightly crackling in the air. “I’m not letting the three of you go without a fight. Or until the bond has run its course.”

“Not to mention that it’s dangerous to separate us now,” she felt ice cold fear. “Ron’s right. The four of us are one year in. The bond’s getting stronger with every moment we spend together. They will try and the Headmaster is good enough to try to succeed.”

“But what about the notebook?” Ron pointed out. He’d signed it, too. “No one is going to know who hasn’t signed it, right?”

“Yes,” Tony assured. “I made sure of that when I made the notebook. The secret is between the four of us and we decide who knows. That does not extend to the Order. I even made it so that those who manage to figure it out somehow – like Sherlock and my friend Aidan – can’t tell anyone outside the four of us unless they sign the book. And even then, only those who have signed the book will be able to talk about it. They won’t be able to communicate a _word_ to anyone else, no signs, drawings, hand gestures… nothing. I have more things to add to it when I get the chance, so believe me when I say that we will know and have complete control over everyone else who gets involved.”

That part – and the conviction in his voice – settled their fears on that.

“But if they should find out,” Hermione shook her head. “I don’t know how, exactly, you can break a marriage bond before it dissolves, so there’s a lot to consider. Especially since people will suspect Tony of luring us into it.”

Harry tugged at his hair. “Even if they find out and want to break it, I don’t want them to try. I like being connected to the three of you like this and I’m used to it.”

“But that doesn’t mean they’ll listen,” she pointed out. “They’ll try to talk you out of it, saying that you were taken advantage of before you knew any better. If the Order decides it’s in our best interest to dissolve this – and they will -, they will do that regardless of what we want. I don’t want them to, either, but to them, they are more experienced and they know better. What are we to them but children?”

“And they didn’t listen to us when we told them about Harry,” Ron complained to Tony, who nodded. “Told us that we were expecting him to be treated better than we were, they did! It was a shock to see otherwise, they told us, that was how Muggles usually treated relatives.”

“Unfortunately,” Tony spat, “Muggles _do_ treat people like that. Not all, but an alarming amount. And LEO’s don’t realize it, because anyone who even tries to blow the whistle are threatened with blackmail – and even death. Those Muggles act like they have power they don’t actually have, but how do you know that they don’t?”

“You don’t,” Harry bitterly replied and Hermione remembered him telling her and Ron about the people who’d tried to help and what had happened to them.

“Magical families aren’t immune, either,” Tony added. “Mrs. Weasley was probably sheltered in that aspect growing up, which makes it hard for her to believe you.”

“Yeah, look at Sirius,” Ron told them.

“But not all abusive families are Pureblood,” the Trio looked back down at Tony in surprise. “There’s this Wizard I know. He grew up in a Mixed and Muggleborn house. That family is the most screwed up that I’ve ever seen and that’s saying a lot. During the early years of our friendship, another friend of ours had convinced him to visit home and it had been naively assumed by the both of us that the guy had had a fight or something with someone,” he smiled humorlessly, thoughts a million miles away. “If Donners hadn’t dragged the three of us out when he did, I wouldn’t be sitting here right now.”

There was a lot of things in that story that they knew Tony wouldn’t tell them, so – even though it was tempting to try – they changed the subject. They couldn’t do anything without Tony talking to Dumbledore, though, so they went back downstairs and out to the tent.

When it grew late and all but Tony and the Trio were asleep, Hermione stared up at the tent roof, the same thoughts running through each of their heads.

Harry was not going – _could_ not go – back to his Aunt’s house. What in Merlin’s name could they do? The blood protection wards couldn’t be sidestepped, but Hermione wished that something happened before graduation and prevented Harry from going back and them being separated.

* **


	8. Tuesday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Trick or treat!  
> (2/2)
> 
> I haven't forgotten any of the series. Don't worry. I'm still writing it one section at a time.

* **

The group woke with the sun for breakfast.

It was Tuesday and they were spending the day cleaning the bedrooms. Later, they would finish the silver and take a swim before starting with the apples that evening.

Arthur Weasley finally introduced himself to Mac, Deeks and Palmer before having to head to work. Molly Weasley told Tony that the Headmaster would be along sometime after lunch, while she gave Ginny the new supplies that Remus had stepped out for. Mac double checked and nodded in approval.

There was almost an incident when Molly gave them one of Lockhart’s books and Gabby managed to snatch it out of Mac’s hands before she could toss it in the fire.

Harry was relieved – if anything else – that Lockhart hadn’t managed to ensnare at least one female.

Deeks wanted to know what that was about, but Tony told him – and them by extension – that he was better off not knowing.

Mrs. Weasley had done most of the work, mostly so she could use a potion on the floor as Mr. Weasley had taken care of anything that may have decided to have made a home in the various nooks and crannies.

Their job was to change the sheets and pillowcases, dust the mirrors, clean the inside windows and polish and dust the furniture. Arthur had also asked that they empty out all the drawers that they found and to bring anything downstairs. The rooms had been aired out and the potion soaked mattresses had special charms taking care of them.

They started at the top after breakfast.

“Alright,” Mac looked around at them. “We have until after lunch to clean about thirty five rooms. Since you four already took care of the bathrooms – or loos -, it’s just the bedrooms. Tomorrow, we’ll go for the windows, but that’s for tomorrow. Right now, we are going to break into teams. If any of you have played musical chairs, it’s about the same principle. Ron, Deeks, you two will clean the mirrors. If Ron starts one room, then Deeks will go to the next, then Ron, then Deeks, and so on. Gabby and myself will dust the furniture in the rooms that Deeks has as Ginny and Hermione will follow Ron. Palmer,” she turned to him. “You will be in charge of pillows and emptying out any drawers, leaving Tony and Harry who will be working together on all the beds.”

“Neville’s supposed to be here tomorrow,” Ginny added. “He can help with the windows. And then, we’ll have time to ourselves and the apples.”

“What do I do with anything I find?” Palmer asked.

“Here’s a basket,” Deeks gave it over. “I picked it up from downstairs.”

With the radio on, the group got to work.

Harry liked their teamwork as they tackled each of the rooms with their minds set only on their tasks. The work went faster that way.

It made his, Palmer and Tony’s jobs easier when they found sheets and pillow cases already set for them.

The three of them found themselves staying together and it was relaxing to Harry, clearing his mind from the late night revelation and the resulting emotional rollercoaster.

Tony would talk to the Headmaster and then they would see what their options were.

It was as he was helping Palmer check for anything in the drawers, however, that something occurred to him.

As far as the Order knew, they didn’t know that Tony and the Trio knew about the Prophecy. For those that knew in the Order itself, they were taking advantage of it by keeping everyone in the dark. Harry didn’t know what would happen should Tony let on that he knew.

For the past few days, while the Order members who visited had been friendly, Harry had the irrational thought that they really didn’t like Tony. Tonks, Sirius and Remus – and McGonagall, surprisingly enough – seemed to be the only ones who genuinely liked Tony and went out of their way to say hello. Moody, for some odd reason, seemed to chuckled at the Americans and seemed especially amused at Deeks.

On the blond’s part, he was understandably jumpy around the man.

Harry had also gotten the thought that maybe the Order would prefer it if Tony forgot about them.

He felt a flare of panic at that and unceremoniously dropped the small Muggle looking object in the basket before hurrying over to where Tony was scrutinizing the pillow placement, grabbed the Italian’s arm and dragged him out of the room before locking them both in one of the rooms that they already finished.

The mirrors were covered with special cloth to keep the cleaning potion from drying right away, but Harry made sure to stuff the two of them in the corner all the same.

“Tony,” he tugged on the Italian’s arm. “When you talk to Dumbledore, _do not_ let on that you know about the Prophecy.”

“Alright, alright,” he soothed. “I wasn’t really planning to, anyway, so just relax.”

“No. Just – _please_ don’t let on. The Order doesn’t want anyone else to know. They’re going to erase your memory about the Prophecy and they might make you forget about us and –”

“Hey,” Tony hugged him tight. “Harry, just calm down. No one is going to erase my memory because your Godfather would come after them. Donners would be after blood, too. I’ll lie through my teeth and I’ll knock Dumbledore out if he suspects anything.”

Harry wrapped his arms around his friend’s waist and just breathed, comforted by his friend’s solid presence as Tony ran a hand up and down his back.

“Hey,” Deeks suddenly knocked on the door. “Lunch’ll be ready in a half hour.”

“Alright,” Tony acknowledged, giving Harry a last pat as he stepped away. “C’mon. Let’s finish up and go down.”

When all had congregated downstairs, they were surprised at the tally they had completed.

“Wow,” Ginny grinned. “Eighteen rooms? If this keeps up, we’ll be done in no time.”

“Yeah,” Deeks agreed. He and Ron had gotten to twenty one rooms.

“Mum’s going to check when we’re done,” Ginny told them. “But she won’t find anything to complain about.”

“Thanks to Mac,” Hermione beamed at the older Witch, who flushed and modestly waved her away.

“It’s what I do,” she deflected.

Dumbledore arrived after a small dessert and brought Tony to the study as Mrs. Weasley made them go back upstairs.

Mac had them all sat on the floor to digest before going back to work. “It’s not good to move around right after lunch.”

Harry looked around at the group of them clustered in the area between a bed and the dresser.

“Okay,” Deeks caught everyone’s attention. “I feel like this is a good opportunity to get to know each other.”

“That’s a good idea,” Hermione agreed. “Let’s see. What should we talk about?”

Palmer thought about it and chuckled. “I have one. Since Tony’s not here, let’s see, we can tell each other about one of our favorite moments with him.”

“Oh, I’ve got one,” Mac immediately raised a hand. She settled into the story pretty easily. “It was after Palmer got to NCIS and I was in the area for lunch. Tony was working on a case that no one could make any headway on, so I thought it wouldn’t hurt if I asked him for lunch, being someone more familiar with the area than I was. So, we went to this place in Liberty Square and we had lunch. There was a Witch who was sitting near us and we had just gotten our food when he looked over and choked on his water.” Here, she started laughing, “When I asked him what was wrong, he just shook his head and told me that the Witch was sleeping with four people – one of whom was cheating on _her_ with five other people. Well, I didn’t really know what he was talking about, but he was chuckling about it, so I wasn’t really worried. But when he looked at me, there was just something about the look on his face that got _me_ laughing. Oh, it had been such a long time and it felt really good – even though we probably had some looks thrown our way, laughing at nothing like we were.”

Harry smiled at the fondness in her tone.

“Oh,” Gabby perked up. “I do not know Tony like you,” she spoke shyly, “but yesterday, ‘e was looking up at ze clouds. I asked what ‘e was looking for and ‘e said ‘e was looking for patience. I did not know what zat meant, but zere was a smile on ‘iz face when ‘e told me zat I was ze one supposed to look for patience because Fleur still ‘as not found a dress.”

That was nice, too. Harry remembered when Tony came back and asked him – point blank – how he would kill someone. When Harry had asked why, he said something about Eames, so Harry – knowing that Tony was good friends with the other British Wizard that they hadn’t really met – hadn’t taken it seriously. Maybe Eames – who the Trio was still looking forward to meeting as a person instead of a cat – was just as exasperating as Sherlock was.

Deeks didn’t really know Tony that well yet, so he didn’t have anything, while Ginny recounted a moment during her Fourth Year spring break when Tony told her about what American children did to celebrate Easter and the concept of egg hunts. Hermione remembered last summer when Tony made his wigwam. Palmer spoke of one of his many trips with Tony to the local Magical areas, including meeting a Wizard visiting from Williamsburg, Virginia.

Harry thought about it, unable to pick a favorite moment, before finally deciding on Christmas in Fifth Year and the fact that all of his friends were there for once.

“Okay, Ron,” Mac told him, “last one before we end it.”

They all turned to him as he nodded.

“I think that it was during the Yule Ball in Fourth Year.”

“What?” Hermione frowned. “I didn’t hear anything about a visit!”

Harry was surprised, too.

“I don’t think he’d meant to stay for very long,” Ron shrugged. “I saw him coming out of the teacher’s lounge by the Great Hall. He saw me and said hello. Told me that Flitwick had asked him for something and only Americans had it or something like that. Anyway, he was disappointed about how I had been fighting with Harry and I felt really bad about it. He told me that best friends had fights just like everyone else, but best friends working past fights were made all the stronger for it. He held up some snow and said that me and Harry were like the snow, falling apart with nothing to show for it. Then, he closed his hand for a moment before he opened it again, but there was a snowflake made of ice from that snow. ‘This is what you can become. Now, I don’t know about you, but I think this is more impressive, don’t you?’ I agreed and he smiled and I thought it looked a lot like Harry’s, and then I couldn’t remember the last time Harry smiled like that.”

Harry had always wondered what had changed with his best friend after his short disappearance during the Yule Ball. Now he knew. Ron had been more determined to be his friend and it had all been Tony’s doing.

As they all got ready to disperse, Hermione dragged them both in a hug. “I’m glad we’re the best of friends,” she looked at each in turn.

“Me, too,” Deeks smiled slightly as he watched. “I can’t imagine one without the other three nearby.”

“Speaking of Tony,” Mac frowned. “Does anyone have any idea what he wanted to talk to Dumbledore about? He’s been gone awhile.”

They decided to keep going with the bedroom cleaning and Palmer took over Tony’s job in addition to his own.

“Sorry for running off like that,” Harry told him.

“That’s alright,” he shrugged. “Are you okay, though? You looked kind of upset.”

“Yeah. It was nothing to worry about.”

* **

Two hours later, they were done and Tony still hadn’t turned up.

“So,” Mac looked at them all. “We’re done with the house for today, but it’s still kind of hot right now to do the apples. Let’s head back to the tent, finish up the last polishing, then we’ll hit the water until dinner.”

“Now that’s a plan!” Deeks cheered.

But when they got to the tent, however, every last thing left for polishing was so shiny that Harry was sure that he would be able to track a Snitch should one come by.

“Did Tony do this?” Ginny frowned. “What in Merlin’s name was he doing here? Why didn’t he come back upstairs?”

“Deeks,” Palmer turned to him with a frown. “Is Tony outside somewhere?”

The blond went to check and came back to report that Tony was in the orchard.

“How do you know that’s where he is?” Ron wanted to know, hands on hips.

“Because all the apples are rolling toward the back of the orchard.”

“Ze apples are rolling?” Gabby frowned, the others following her outside to see.

“Yeah, that’s Tony alright,” Palmer watched an apple roll past, one of hundreds on the ground making their way to the very back of the orchard where the fence was, just as Deeks said. “I think we can safely assume something’s set him off. Trio, why don’t you see what’s wrong and the rest of us can get our swimming gear.”

“What about the apples, though?” Ginny put her hands on her hips. “Isn’t Tony going to need digging out or something?”

“Let’s let your brother and his friends calm Tony down,” Mac told her. “Tony will save something for you and once he’s calm, we can ask if he needs help.”

Harry and his friends set off after the apples while the others went back inside the tent. It was something reminiscent of last summer when Tony had made his wigwam and Harry kind of hoped that wasn’t an omen for the coming school year. He may not like not knowing where Sirius was, but he disliked not knowing Tony’s location even more.

Eventually, they came to the end of the first little bit of trees and found themselves in the clearing that Tony had set up camp in last summer.

There, they found all the apples gathered in a bunch of little piles with a waist high wall dividing the clearing from one end to the other.

“Tony?” Hermione called, looking around.

“Yeah?” they startled violently at the voice in front of them.

Ron bent over the rather thick wall and saw Tony’s shoe. “Oh, he’s on the ground on the other side.”

“Did you ask the Headmaster?” Harry heard Hermione ask as he leaned against the wall himself, finding it steady and solid.

The Trio heard the grass rustle slightly as Tony got up and they were both startled and alarmed at the raw _fury_ sparkling in his eyes. Harry felt ice sink into his system at that.

“Tony,” Hermione started shaking her head, her eyes wide. “Tony, no…”

“The Order,” he gritted his teeth as he stood to lean down against the apple wall, “in all their _infinite_ , _clearly_ superior wisdom, has made the unanimous decision to send him back. Harry is both the Boy Who Lived and the one that the prophecy spoke of and that makes him too vulnerable to be… shall we say, let loose.”

“He can’t go back!” Ron’s growl lessened the panic Harry felt at that enough to be interested in the rest of the conversation. “You didn’t see what they did before Second Year.”

“After graduation,” Tony continued, “a few select Order members will escort him back to his Aunt’s house and he will undergo Auror training like everyone else. He will stay with his Aunt and the Order has agreed that this is in his best interests.”

“The bloody hell it is!” Ron tried kicking the apple wall’s edge, but the apples kind of rippled back to let his leg ‘swim’ through them without allowing him to hurt himself.

“Basically,” Hermione appeared torn between panic and anger as Ron glared at the apples and tried kicking again to the same result, “he’ll never get away from them! Tony, those people will do whatever possible to make him miserable. They might very well get him killed! Isn’t there some way around this?”

“I don’t know,” Tony shook his head. “But what I do know is that I’m not letting them send you back, Harry.”

“Me, either,” Ron agreed, giving up on the apples. “I’ll kidnap you myself if I have to.”

“Well, it’s not going to mean very much, will it?” he told them bitterly. “No matter what, I need to stay with a blood relative.”

“What about the marriage bond?” Hermione asked Tony.

“Unless you want to be the one telling all and sundry about it – in which case I’m still expecting something like ‘hell no’ -, I think we can rule that out.”

“But we have to figure something out,” Ron looked at them in desperation.

“No one will listen nor will they do anything,” Hermione looked near tears. “Blood protection doesn’t mean much when the one being protected is killed by their own family!”

“Don’t you think I know that?” Tony hissed, green eyes flaring. “No one will do anything as long as they think he’ll be safe due to the blood protection. As long as Harry stays alive, his family can do anything to him. Dumbledore is convinced that Harry’s safe with them and he won’t listen, even if I’ve told him that I’ve seen this kind of thing before. Obviously not blood protection per se, but I’ve seen kids going back that aren’t as lucky as Harry. If that’s the kids *without* blood protection … that’s just an airtight excuse for child abuse. And blood protection will cover it up,” Tony was disgusted. “Many have died because of well-meaning actions with good intentions. There’s a reason that’s what the road to hell is paved with. Harry, as long as you are alive, people turn the other way because they are convinced that it is the only option. I will tell you this right here and now: The only way you’re going back is over my dead body.”

“And ours,” Ron agreed, surprising them when he pulled Harry to him in a slightly awkward hug.

Harry was sincerely touched by their determination and felt relief that Tony wasn’t waving them off for having overactive imaginations.

None of them paid much mind to his anger on Harry’s behalf, but they would eventually learn that there was actually a lifetime of experience behind his reactions – and that others had been through similar circumstances in the Italian’s life. Not just Harry, and look where that got them.

“But the Headmaster wouldn’t let anything interfere,” Hermione said quietly.

“But that doesn’t mean we can’t fight it,” Tony countered. “There _must_ be something…”

But what that something could be wasn’t revealing itself today.

“Here,” Tony suddenly handed over three buckets. “The color will change from white to red when they need to be dumped. You get a lot more work done without constantly having to walk up and dump them in the bushel baskets. Work smarter, not harder, after all.”

“That’s a brilliant idea,” Hermione smiled sadly. “What should we start on first?”

“The wall,” Tony tapped it with a sigh. “The piles will just fill up what we take.”

“Kind of like cheating, innit?” Ron started putting apples in his bucket. “Mum says do it the Muggle way.”

“As far as I’m concerned, we are,” Tony huffed. “I need to do magic somehow.”

Harry had the feeling that Tony wasn’t caring on purpose, but he wasn’t sure why. Maybe it was revenge on the Order – however indirectly – for having the nerve to send him back. Shrugging, Harry started filling his basket, too.

After about an hour and a half, Hermione looked toward the house. “I think the others are still swimming,” she noted.

“Probably,” Tony shrugged. “Hey, they’re red already,” he mused, looked down at his bucket.

The four of them trooped back toward the house and headed for the pile of baskets set up for them. Tony went over to one and tipped his bucket upside down, a stream of apples coming out. The Trio each picked a basket and emptied their own buckets.

“That’s a lot,” Harry watched Tony’s basket fill up.

“And it’ll go faster when the others help,” Hermione added.

“Oh,” Tony spoke up. “I forgot to mention. Neville Longbottom is coming, so he’ll be here after lunch tomorrow when Mi’s friend comes by.”

“It’ll be nice seeing him again,” Harry smiled at the thought of his forgetful and clumsy dorm mate.

“Let me get this right,” Tony’s bucket finally ran dry. “You three were best friends in First Year, right?”

“Yeah,” Harry would never forget it. “Did you have all of your friends in First Year, too?”

“No, just Booker. Sparky came along in Second and Pin in Third.”

“I think I met one of the Deans,” Harry recalled. “Evansworth, I think. He was hanging on a wall at school.”

“Really? Huh. I wonder why. But yeah,” Tony smiled. “Evansworth was one of our best informants.”

“He said you solved cases.”

“Well, mostly misplaced stuff, but there were some memorable ones. And speaking of cases,” Tony looked behind them at the group coming toward them from the swimming hole. “Do I want to know what happened?”

“Probably not,” the Trio turned to see Deeks covered in mud and the others distinctly mud-free, but with wide smiles.

“What happened to you?” Ron wanted to know.

“Use your imagination.”

* **

 


	9. A Dinner Revelation

Dinner was a quiet affair, not that Ron minded.

He noticed Gabby disappear for a few minutes and Tony frown after her, but Ron just shrugged and went for the food.

Palmer picked at his dinner thoughtfully. “We’ve got the windows left, right?”

“Yes,” Hermione nodded. “For the house. Then we have all those apples to take care of.”

“Your friend’s leaving Thursday, right? I need to get a few things from Diagon Alley.”

"Our lists will more than likely come before then.”

“I think we’d all like to go, too,” Mac nodded.

“I’ve never been there,” Deeks shrugged, “but I heard it’s a great place.

That led to a discussion about what their favorite thing to do was whenever they got to Diagon Alley.

“The twins have a joke shop,” Ginny told them proudly. “It’s doing really well.”

“That’s going to be one of the first places we’ll go,” Mac assured her.

“I don’t know,” Tony frowned. “I would kind of like Deeks to _not_ be traumatized.”

“Hey, I can handle jokers,” the blond protested. “Really.”

“Have you heard of the Marauders?” Ginny asked. “Harry’s dad was one. They were a group of practical jokers back when they were at Hogwarts.”

“Yeah,” Ron nodded. “Peter Pettigrew, Remus Lupin, James Potter and Sirius Black.”

“The guy framed for murder?” Deeks whistled. “Wow.”

Silence.

“ _Explain_ ,” Hermione demanded, startling the blond who was already taken aback at the intense looks.

“Oh, um,” he rubbed the back of his neck under their gazes. “It was all over the news when he escaped from Azkaban. They said he was the Secret Keeper to Harry’s family, right? Everyone said that James Potter made his closest friend the person who ended up selling them out. I’ve read about the Fidelis Charm and how someone is picked to keep the secret.”

“Then how do you reckon Black was framed?” Ron wanted to know.

“It was well known that Potter and Black were the best of friends,” Mac said thoughtfully.

“Yeah,” Deeks shrugged. “They made no secret that they thought the world of each other. I mean, that’s what I paid attention to. If I was going to use a Secret Keeper and everyone who was anyone knew I was close to… let’s say Callen, I don’t think I would use him because that would put him in danger.”

“And they never gave him a trial,” Palmer pointed out.

“So, they just assumed he was guilty and threw him in jail,” Mac shook her head. “And then he escaped.”

“Everyone was so certain he was the Secret Keeper,” Deeks told her. “It was so obvious that they never thought that maybe there was an actual possibility of Black having nothing to do with it. Actually, now that I think of it, Nell did something similar just last week. She had made it clear to everyone that she liked a certain drawer, but when she told Kensi to go get something, that was the obvious place that Kensi looked. Nell had evidently hid it in my desk because no one would have thought to look there.”

“It’s the same principle,” Palmer agreed.

“Of course,” Mac murmured, her brown eyes a million miles away. “Make it look obvious and it is. Until you look closer to see that it’s _not_. It was all a ruse to keep the real Secret Keeper protected.”

“It’d been Black’s suggestion,” Tony finally entered the conversation, his green eyes flitting between the three. “James had wanted Sirius as Secret Keeper, but Sirius hadn’t thought that he would have the courage to protect his best friend. That doubt led him to suggest someone else.”

Ron could almost _hear_ the Knut drop as realization dawned on their faces, eyes going wide.

“It couldn’t have been Lupin,” Mac shook her head. “I can honestly tell you that he doesn’t strike me as the type to sell someone out. So, that leaves…”

“Tony,” Palmer’s eyes narrowed behind wireframe lenses. “How do _you_ know?”

“Black’s not in Lithuania, is he?” Mac studied him.

The look on Tony’s face answered right before Gabby came back to the kitchen.

She noted the tension in the room and asked what was wrong.

“They just found out a truth,” Tony waved her off. “I suspect you’ll hear about it soon enough.”

Dinner ended in contemplative silence and everyone went back to the tent when it ended.

Deeks, Palmer and Mac were still silent, but Ron knew they were still thinking about it, as all relaxed in the sitting room before they went back out for the apples. Gabby was off in the sleeping area, but Ron knew that sleep was far from her mind since he peeked in and saw her frowning at a bundle of papers in her Beauxbatons sleeping bag.

In the sitting area, Tony was on his stomach on the floor, sketching intently at something that held all his attention.

“There was a story there,” Palmer suddenly spoke from the bean bag he’d collapsed into. “I know there was.”

“You’re right,” Tony told him absently, “but it’s not my story to tell.”

Ginny gave Ron a meaningful look before he turned to Harry and Hermione, who nodded. “It’s a bit of a long story,” Ron finally admitted.

“I’d like to hear it,” Deeks told them quietly, blue eyes watching them intently from where he was sprawled on a different pouf. “We all would.”

“I’ve already heard it,” Tony glanced up. “I don’t have anything to add anyway since I wasn’t there.”

“That doesn’t mean you have to leave,” Hermione protested as he stood.

Tony just shook his head, an odd look on his face. “You three can tell this story. I’m going to check on Gabby.”

Ginny and the Americans gathered closer as Tony disappeared down the little hall to their sleeping room. “Well?” she prompted her brother.

“Well,” Harry sighed as he, Ron and Hermione stood in front of them. “I think it really started when I was leaving the Dursleys.”

He went over what happened that led to his trip on the Knight Bus and the first glimpse of the black dog, to his stay in Diagon Alley after meeting with the Minister of Magic. Ron knew that he skipped over meeting Tony since only Tony and the three of them knew that was truly when they began their friendship instead of the ‘official’ story of meeting in First Year.

After the Dementors boarded the train, things went on from there. Then, finally, the end of the year had come and the Trio had found out the truth in the Shrieking Shack – including the reason there was a Whomping Willow on the grounds.

Ron had been surprised when Hermione had taken over to explain the Time Turner. He’d heard of them before, of course, who hadn’t? But he’d never actually seen them in action. Now, he realized he had, just like seeing Tony’s weather ability first hand in Fourth Year.

When the story drew to its close, the group just stayed silent for long moments before Deeks nodded.

“Like I said. Too obvious to be true.”

“Thank you for telling us,” Mac said quietly.

“You knew there was a story,” Harry shrugged. “We just confirmed it.”

They were silent until Palmer shifted slightly. “We should probably get started with the apples.”

The others agreed and went to get Tony and Gabby, though he waved them ahead.

“Wonder what they’re doing,” Ron mused as the Trio led the way, Mac providing little balls of light to work by.

“We’ll probably find out soon enough,” she told them. “I think it’s about the wedding.”

While Tony and Gabby never showed up, even hours later, the group still gathered apples until it was even past bedtime and they started yawning. The pair was already asleep when they arrived.

* **


	10. The Other Peter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I AM ALIVE! 
> 
> Seriously, thanks for sticking with this for so long. I actually have half of this story done, but I've been really busy writing the story that I apparently created the series for, Secrets of Hogwarts. It literally blew up as I was writing Summer Contacts, the first story. I will finish this, I promise, but it's the end of this story that I seem to have issues with. 
> 
> After this, I will write the Eureka crossover - 'Just Another Day', no relation to the Eureka episode I just found out about - and then we will start getting a little darker with 'Secrets'. 
> 
> Have you ever had a story that you really wanted to write and you evidently had it thought out before starting the series and now you literally have to write it before anything else happens? 'Secrets' is that story, but I will get through this one when I've figured out how to go forward. I'll post what I've got - I'm thinking about maybe fifteen more chapters if not twenty - because I wrote it out and will have to type as I go. Don't worry, it will get done.
> 
> Sorry if anyone thinks I've abandoned it, but the series has been my life for the last year. It's not going to end yet. It'll just take awhile to get there.

* * *

Tony stretched happily as the sun began its journey across the sky, shining down on him as he stood outside the tent.

Last night was an eye opener, that was for sure.

When he had gone to distract their little spy, he’d found her pouring over a sheaf of music written for the violin.

‘You play?’ he had wanted to know, reading over her shoulder.

‘Yes,’ she had frowned. 'But… I want to play zis song for my sister.’

‘Well, what’s stopping you?’ Tony hadn’t let on that he knew what Mrs. Weasley had put her up to. He still didn’t know what the French witch was being blackmailed with.

‘It iz too ‘ard,’ he’d been surprised by the bitter tone and the glassy look in her eyes. ‘It iz too difficult for my skill level.’

‘Who told you that?’

‘Everyone.’

He’d been puzzled by that and Gabby explained that everyone she had gone to about it said that it was a complex song for those who were older than her. Madame Maxime – the Headmistress – had given her something simple to perform, but Gabby _hated_ it.

Tony had taken a look and saw that the song could be done with a piano as well, but again, no one thought she could do it.

He’d asked her to play a bit for him and she’d done so, his mind automatically joining in with the piano until she finished. Honestly, Tony thought that – with enough practice – Gabby could knock it right out of the park. It would be incredible with the piano accompaniment, too.

But when Tony had told her to do it anyway, she was convinced that he was humoring her. He just told her to play and he’d followed along in his head. By the end of the seven minutes it took to play the whole thing – not counting times where she messed up and had to start the measure over again –, he was more determined to showcase her talent. They would practice again tonight, but it would be hours from now.

Now, he was dressed for breakfast and to finish cleaning the Burrow so they could focus on the outside. The others were trickling out and Gabby wandered out after Mac to pull Tony to the side.

“Please do not tell anyone,” she pleaded. “Per’aps someone will find out and tell someone who will tell someone I do not want to find out.”

“Okay, okay,” he agreed. “No telling wedding secrets.”

“What wedding secrets?” Hermione wanted to know, coming out with everyone else.

“If I told you before the wedding, it wouldn’t be a secret, now would it?”

They shuffled into the kitchen just as breakfast was being put out.

“The inside windows are going to be a snap,” Deeks immediately piled his plate with eggs, not as uptight as he was when he first got to the Burrow and Tony was glad to see that he was relaxed enough to let his guard down. “Not much, are there?”

“Enough to keep us occupied,” Hermione told him.

Mrs. Weasley paused next to her. “Hermione, dear, your friend should be here just in time for lunch. I’ll set an extra place. Oh, and Neville will be arriving after that.”

“Thanks, Mrs. Weasley,” Hermione watched as Ron’s Mum scurried out of the kitchen before shaking her head. “Actually, I’m fairly sure it would be about time for breakfast by the time he gets here for lunch.”

“He’s American?” Mac – of course – looked up with interest.

“Hmm.”

“It’s not Phil, is it?” Tony frowned at Hermione. There were things there that were just too complicated for this early in the morning.

“Who’s Phil?” Deeks wanted to know.

“A Squib we met during the Easter holiday,” Hermione explained. “A very lovely Squib, but Agent has a habit of wanting to play with him.”

Tony ducked his head to hide a grin as he remembered that.

“Poor bloke’s terrified of dogs,” Harry grinned as realization dawned and the others chuckled. “Runs up trees as soon as he sees one.”

“That’s actually how we met Phil,” Hermione giggled, looking back.

The conversation was light and easy as they finished breakfast and headed upstairs, probably to counteract the serious mood from last night.

Deeks was right; the windows really were a snap with all of them working. It took two hours at the most before they were back outside in the orchard. Tony, Harry, Ron and Mi led the way to the spot from last night and handed buckets out to demolish the rebuilt wall.

“I can’t help thinking that this is cheating somehow,” Palmer mused, filling his bucket with the first of the day’s apples.

Tony was sure he was right, but honestly didn’t care. He was still worrying over the Order’s decision to send Harry back to that hell.

When he and Sherlock had arrived to get Harry, both had ended up in the second bedroom and it didn’t take long for both Consulting Detective and NCIS Agent to come to a conclusion. It was confirmed when they went through the house and Tony couldn’t believe it. That was the family that Dumbledore entrusted Harry to? Visions of two different blonds and one brunet had bombarded him ever since and the relative hells they’d had to endure.

To say nothing of himself.

He wasn’t letting Harry be the next one if he could help it.

“Well, my back thanks you,” Deeks quipped.

“Give my regards.”

They bantered as they passed the time putting apples in their buckets, apples gathering in piles around them and waiting for them to leave so they could replace their fellows on the wall.

A quartet of spray bottle fans appeared not long after they started to keep them cool and the nine greatly appreciated it.

“Sometime after lunch, we need to go swimming,” Hermione sighed in relief as one of the fans blew water and air over her.

“Yeah,” Ron agreed. “We can do it tomorrow, too.”

“I’m in,” Harry ruffled his own hair as the fan turned to him.

Eventually, the time crawled past and it was time for lunch.

Gabby hung back to walk with Tony, who sent the bemused Trio on ahead to greet Hermione’s friend, the both of them walking in silence before they got within sight of the house.

“Tony,” she worried her lip. “In Ginny’s room, I left my violin supplies. Could you get zem?”

“Sure,” he nodded. After all these years with Sherlock, Tony knew what to look for.

They were the last to enter the kitchen and Tony noted the Trio in the living room before he took a seat at the table. After a moment, he noted the odd looks Palmer was giving him and raised a brow.

“Something on your mind, Palmer?” 

“Uh, no, not really,” he frowned. Since the younger man was standing in the door between the kitchen and living room, he just needed to turn his head from one room to the other. “Hey, um, Tony?” he glanced from one room to the other again. “You know, it’s actually kind of interesting. You know Hermione’s friend is here, right? Well, believe it or not, her friend looks an _awful_ lot like – ”

Tony had tuned him out completely once the Trio came back in with a man _far_ from unrecognizable.

He had short brown hair and chocolate brown eyes, and was wearing light summer clothes. Usually, the man wore a suit or something similar, but Tony would still know who stood in front of him no matter what.

His green eyes locked with his cousin’s brown eyes and, for a moment, red obstructed his vision and he _thought_ he said something before shutting his eyes and shaking his head.

When he thought it was clear, he opened his eyes and saw his cousin rubbing his. “Peter?”

Peter Burke collected himself and beamed at his favorite little cousin. “Tony!”

The younger man immediately took off from his seat and grabbed the only blood cousin he would claim as family. “I can’t remember the last time I saw you!” Then he lowered his voice. “Did I say something?”

“I was about to ask you,” Peter chuckled, slapping his shoulder. “How are you, kid?”

“Can’t complain. You?”

“Happy for the break.”

They chatted for a few minutes before Tony finally noticed the silence surrounding them.

He glanced around at the puzzled looks and beamed. “This is my cousin Peter. Peter, this is everyone. Oh, and you remember Palmer.”

“Always a pleasure,” they shook hands warmly. Tony was glad that Peter and Palmer had met a few times before, letting Peter know at least one of the group on a personal level. He didn’t think that Peter met Mac though. Luckily, it was before Palmer witnessed one of their staged arguments and was able to act accordingly.

“Uh,” Deeks lifted a hand. “What the hell was that? Because for a minute there, you looked ready to go at each other’s throat.”

Tony felt slightly sheepish as everyone else agreed. “Oh, that’s second nature by now.”

“Office politics,” Palmer explained. “Their regional division Agency Supervisors – Donners is Tony’s unit Super and doesn’t actually apply – hate each other and will only let them work together if they hate each other, too.”

“Oh,” Deeks and Mac nodded, understanding completely.

“What do you mean ‘oh’?” Hermione demanded. “That sounds stupid.”

“But effective,” Peter smiled smugly. “We’ve had eighteen cases together and we’ve solved every single one.”

“You’ll understand when you end up working for the government,” Mac assured. “No matter what country, it’s always done.”

“In the Muggle world, too,” Deeks added.

“But you’re friends, right?” Harry looked from one cousin to the other.

“Yeah,” Tony nodded. “Actually, as far as I’m concerned, Peter’s my _only_ cousin.”

“That’s always nice to hear,” Peter smiled slightly.

Tony, however, caught sight of the relief on Hermione’s face and let his eyes narrow. It was so good to hang out with Peter, but it didn’t escape him that Peter was here as Hermione’s guest –

No.

No, she _didn’t_.

Hermione smiled brightly, as if in answer to his suspicion, and he felt slightly sick. He should’ve known that comment he made over the summer was going to come back to bite him.

Mrs. Weasley came in to make sure everyone was settled before she caught some Order members up to date in the study before the meeting that night. She fussed over Peter as the new guest and made sure lunch was right and gave those in the know a warning look to behave before leaving.

“You were just in time for breakfast after all,” Mac smiled slightly as Peter grabbed a few ham sandwiches.

“This is my breakfast and your lunch,” he told them. “Not that long ago, I was asleep. Tony, I don’t know how you do it,” he jolted the younger man from glaring at Hermione.

“Practice,” he shrugged.

They ate amidst conversation and getting to know Peter, who answered all the questions they could think of.

“Okay,” Deeks spoke up when the laughter at one of Peter’s most memorable Magical White Collar-type cases came to an end. “Now, I have to ask the question all of us are thinking: What was Tony like in school?”

“What _was_ he like in school?” Ginny leaned forward, everyone else just as interested.

“Hm,” Peter looked thoughtful as he drank some coffee. “Well, he wasn’t much trouble and I don’t think he ever really got a Howler, but I _do_ know that he and his three friends ran around campus like you would not believe. To be honest, I was not at all surprised when he went into law enforcement. When he got to the Institute, I was worried _sick_. Oh, I wasn’t worried that he wouldn’t make friends because he came in with Booker off the train – I cannot remember that child’s real name even now for the life of me – and those two were inseparable from the beginning. It was the teasing I was ready to jump on. Tony’s Third Year – and my First, as it happened –, John Sheppard, was dealing with some of it and he was kind of already in a bad place at that time. Eventually, though, everything smoothed out and word spread that Tony and Booker – then Sparky in Second Year and Pin in Third – were good at investigating and solving these little cases and it was just fascinating to hear everything they did.”

“Wait,” Mac paused, coffee mid-rise to her mouth. “Why would Tony be teased at school? It can’t be because he’s Italian or because he’s Mixed, right?”

“Yeah,” Deeks forgot he was eating a sandwich, having been absorbed in the conversation. “I mean if Tony was getting such a reputation, he had to be one of the… well, popular crowd, right?”

To be honest, Tony forgot about that. “Well… uhm… kind of…?” That, however, had only been one reason for the teasing.

“Tony’s magic was having trouble coming out,” Peter watched his drink as his thoughts turned inward. “It wasn’t until Dumbledore came over that we realized that Tony’s magic was blocked.”

Both Weasleys, Gabby, Palmer and Deeks gasped.

“You?” Ron’s eyes saucered at Tony, who shifted uncomfortably under the others’ stares. “A magic – that’s illegal!”

“Who did it?” Mac demanded to know, brown eyes spitting fire as she no doubt planned revenge – in a legal way, of course, Tony knew how much of a threat she was both in and out of court and actually felt touched – in a smack down that may involve spells being used.

“What’s wrong?” Harry frowned. “I don’t understand.”

“It’s illegal to put a magic block on a child under eleven,” Mac explained, fury barely contained. “Unless that child’s magical core needs some help, but you would need to go through a _lot_ of people to get one put on them. A person like the Headmaster would need to examine the candidate and make a recommendation on whether a child would need a magic block or not. That’s the _only_ reason that a child would require a block. Tony,” she turned to him. “I’ve seen and felt your magic. I always thought that your magic was naturally strong, but to have a block… I can’t imagine.”

“And when that block finally broke,” Peter shook his head solemnly. “It was terrifying enough that I still get nightmares about it. There’s a reason it’s illegal.”

Tony honestly didn’t remember much about the aftermath of that breaking. He’d blacked out, but everyone from John, Aidan and Peter to Booker and Sparky and Pin told him it had scared years off their lives.

“The Dean called in the Hogwarts teachers and a few from Beauxbatons – even from Salem Academy – to help keep Tony’s magic from tearing both himself and half the school apart. They worked to stabilize him for _days_ and even now he still has excess magic that truly hasn’t been spent. I know you think Dumbledore is powerful, but you have no idea just how powerful Tony really is.”

It sunk in for long moments, the silence kind of disbelieving.

“I never realized,” Hermione shook her head, “how many times that we came close to not meeting Tony.”

“It’s kind of scary, isn’t it?” Deeks sighed. “Not all magic blocked kids come out that lucky. The Agent in Charge of the LA MNP office, Amanda Levy, said that about two or three kids out of every thirteen make it. Tony was really lucky.”

“But did you ever figure out who put it in place to begin with?” Mac asked.

“No,” Peter shrugged. “And, make no mistake, there _was_ an investigation launched. It had been in place for years, so the trail was already cold. It’s still unsolved to this day.”

“And with Harry and Mi coming of Age,” Tony offered, “that’s just affecting me more than it probably would someone else.”

“I’m glad you’re here for us to affect,” Hermione looked like she was going to cry, her lower lip slightly trembling.

“Me, too,” Harry looked kind of pale.

“Well,” Peter smiled widely – and Tony could recognize a forced smile when he saw one – as he decided a change of subject was in order. “What’s on the agenda for today?”

It wasn’t too bad; apples for most of the day and then swimming. Tony knew that they would have to tell Peter about the marriage bond before the sun set and he lost his nerve even though he wasn’t entirely certain why Hermione would ask his cousin along to begin with. Gabby kept throwing him looks through the rest of lunch and Tony eventually decided to go up and get the supplies.

“I’ll be back,” he stood as dishes started flying for the sink.

“We’ll wait,” Peter waved him off. “Apples won’t walk without you.”

Tony left the kids to tell Peter about the apple wall and glanced toward the study on his way through the living room. Dumbledore had promised a night to themselves and had scheduled an Order meeting at Number Twelve for just that purpose. Tony had a plan for dinner that he was keeping close to his chest and hoped all would enjoy it. Peter, Palmer and Mac certainly would.

Peter’s wife, Elizabeth, was a good cook in her own right, but Peter had more than once admitted to him that he would be hard pressed to choose between them.

Elle knew that they didn’t really hate each other, but, if Tony didn’t know any better, he would’ve thought she still hated him. He couldn’t imagine why, though. From what he understood, she adopted Neal Caffrey without hesitation.

Tony shook his head and decided to think of something else, whistling slightly as he headed for Ginny’s room. Gabby had stashed it under the redhead’s bed and it was exactly where she said it was.

With the violin maintenance kit in hand, he made his way down a few flights before his ear caught a light footstep.

“Hello?” he blinked, half turning to look behind him. Waiting for something else, he eventually shrugged it off and went down another flight of stairs. He stopped again when he heard something going on in one of the closed rooms and frowned. ‘Did we miss something?’ he wondered, opening the door and was about to open his mouth when he paused.

Nothing had moved.

“Odd,” he sighed. “Ah, well.” He closed the door again and was just about to head downstairs when he froze as he heard that same door creak open.

He hadn’t closed it right. That was all it was.

There didn’t need to be anything else, right?

Feeling slightly unnerved, he pasted a smile on his face as he slowly turned to the slightly open door –

* **

Harry sighed as he drank his tea.

He was still coming to terms with the fact that Tony could have died _loads_ of times before their paths crossed and it wasn’t a very easy thing to do. Tony just didn’t seem like his life was constantly in danger, though he, Ron and Hermione knew better.

He looked over at Ron, who smiled weakly at him, his friend thinking similar thoughts.

Palmer caught his eye and reached out to pat his arm with a comforting smile. “I know how you feel,” he said, not needing spoken words to follow his thoughts. “I count Tony as a good friend and I honestly can’t imagine not having him in my life.”

“I can’t, either,” Peter chimed in. “But what I _can_ do is imagine what life would be like without him for three others.”

“Booker, Sparky and Pin,” Hermione nodded.

“Pin, I think, benefits more than the girls,” he mused. “I talked to his father about it and he told me that he wished _he_ ’d had a friend like Tony growing up.”

“What are they doing now?” Ron wanted to know. “I mean, if Tony’s a Bobby for the Navy, what about the others?”

“Well, Tony could tell you details, but Pin’s actually teaching at the Institute. Booker’s an author and Sparky – I believe – is a clothes designer or something.”

“They’re still close, right?”

“Yeah, they try getting together at least once a year or so. Their last get together –”

A wave of familiar energy washed over the house and Harry tensed, remembering well the last time.

The present Order members, however, had not and Tonks raced past the kitchen with four others running after her, all beginning to run up the stairs when Tony came barreling down and slammed into them. The group went down and Harry watched Peter calmly stand and station himself at the door just in time for his cousin to run into him.

Peter immediately grabbed him in a bear hug as Mrs. Weasley hurried into the kitchen and Moody clumped after her, magical eye running all over the place. Tony had grabbed his cousin back and Harry could catch bits of Italian from him – something that was obviously a result of this kind of thing.

“What’s happened?” Ron’s mum demanded to know, looking through the window as three others covered the front and back doors.

“Another hallucination?” Tonks came in, absently rubbing her hip from where she had landed on the floor. She gave a squeak of surprise and let her hair turn white when Tony grabbed her, a wild look on his face.

“Hallucination? _Hallucination_? How can I halucin- I saw _eyes_!”

“Okay, calm down,” Peter gently disengaged him. “Ron, start the tea. Tony, let’s sit you down. That’s it. I’m sure one of Mrs. Weasley’s friends can double check.”

“But it’s in his head,” Tonks told him before catching Tony’s dark look. “I mean, erm, can’t hurt to double check.”

“Nothing up there now, DiNozzo,” Moody spoke up, obviously humoring him.

Harry figured that Tony knew he was being humored, but the Italian nonetheless relaxed into his seat as Ron approached with the kettle of ready tea. Harry watched him take one look at the Italian before going back to the dish cabinet.

By the time everyone had double checked upstairs and had returned to the kitchen, Tony was drinking tea out of a bowl via straw with some colored umbrellas floating around in it.

“What?” Ron defended when he saw the looks. “He was upset.”

It was established that it was simply another incident that either Harry or Hermione – or both – inadvertently concocted and both couldn’t help apologizing for what they actually had no control over.

The group went back to the tent while the Order members want back to the study and Palmer told Tony that he didn’t need to move from the tent sitting room after his no doubt traumatizing experience.

“I would like to stay here a few moments myself,” Hermione spoke up. “Peter, Harry and Ron will, too.”

“Alright, but don’t stress him out even more,” Palmer instructed. “It’ll get worse before it gets better.”

Once the others were out of the tent, Peter put his hands on his hips as he watched the four in front of him. “Hermione, I have to admit. I wasn’t quite sure what to think when I got your letter asking me to visit, but I’m now starting to wonder if my being here is due to more than wanting Tony to spend time with his cousin."

The Trio looked at Tony, who sighed in resignation. “You all agree?”

“Well,” Hermione shrugged. “You did say that you didn’t spend nearly enough time with your cousin Peter, so…”

“Okay, okay. Peter. I’m going to have to ask that you sign this,” he extracted the ‘bond’ notebook from a pocket. “What knowledge is about to be entrusted to you goes no further than the five of us. Got it?”

Peter nodded, knowing from his cousin’s unusually solemn green eyes that this was serious.

Once his name was added to the list of seven names already there – such as Aidan, Donners, Sherlock and the quartet in front of him -, Peter took a seat as the four straightened.

“Well,” Tony looked around at each of them. “I guess we should start with; Peter? Meet Harry, Ron and Hermione. Your new cousins.”

* **


	11. Surprising Information

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The plot thickens.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I should probably post what I've got while I can, considering that I'm almost 'halfway' finished with a sequel to this that I'm probably not supposed to be writing yet. I'm just about halfway done with this story, but I have to get myself there. And I think it's going to be difficult writing certain parts of it without starting to tear up. 
> 
> And then I'm going to have to work on the Eureka one after that.
> 
> Oh, and there's a companion fic to this story called 'Sweet Danger' that'll be posted pretty soon so keep an eye out for that. 
> 
> Enjoy the curveball I just threw and I'll see you soon. :)

* * *

 

Peter Burke had a lot of experience with his favorite cousin, so he counted himself something of an expert at sussing out a lie with him.

Neal Caffrey was, of course, not an undercover agent by any stretch of the imagination, so Peter found him just a little easier.

So when Tony and the kids finished telling him about the Black family marriage set and its impact on the Trio’s Sixth Year, he was _certain_ this was some kind of joke. The more he looked at their solemn and slightly nervous expressions, however, the more he realized they were _serious_.

“Oh,” he slumped back into his chair. “ _Oh_.”

“Yeah,” Tony scrubbed a hand through his hair. “It took me a bit to come to terms, too.”

“Okay. And no one showed Mrs. Weasley or anything?”

“No,” Hermione shook her head. “And we couldn’t ask unless we wanted someone becoming suspicious.”

Peter rubbed his face. “Alright. Well, um, wel-welcome to the family, first of all. Congratulations. Sorry I wasn’t there to see it. That’s supposed to be a good omen, though, getting married on New Year’s. It’s nice to meet all of you in person…” he heard more than saw Tony’s snort and shrugged. “Well, what do you want me to say? I’m still processing this. It was by accident and I don’t see what you – any of you – could’ve done differently. And anyway, Marriage Sets are usually locked up. Ron, if your mother really _was_ on a cleaning spree, there honestly is a good chance that she had no idea what it was that she was looking at. From what I’m understanding of all of this, no one is at fault. Except maybe the Blacks for not taking care of it like they – alright, I _am_ talking about the Blacks…” he rubbed his eyes.

“I just thought that Tony should tell at least one person in his family,” Hermione – mastermind behind it all – wrung her hands. “Well, someone we can go to if – Merlin forbid – we can’t get to Tony. And he did say that if there was one person in his family that he trusted without doubt, it would be you.”

“We thought it was a good idea,” Ron shrugged, Harry nodding in agreement.

Peter rubbed his face again and thought hard about it, trying to think around the shock just setting in. So what if Tony got married by accident? Especially to these kids? Tony hadn’t wanted to let anyone else in on the secret, but Peter had somehow managed to become one of those they let in and he wasn’t about to betray the only family member he could really ever bring himself to keep in contact with.

“No, you’re right,” he sat up with determination. “Should something happen, I do want the three of you to know that my door is always open. Donners does know, correct? Well, if it comes down to it, Tony has another Agent looking out for him. I should probably write my information down. Oh, thank you for telling me.”

“Not exactly much of a choice,” Tony smiled slightly, winking at Hermione to show that they were alright.

“What about Booker, Sparky and Pin, though?” Peter had to ask. “The four of you are close, too.”

“The bond lasts for ten years, right? More or less?” Tony shrugged. “I probably will end up telling them eventually, but…”

“Need to Know,” Peter nodded. He personally thought that all the imagined scenarios were the mark of overactive minds, but he’s always been of the opinion that Tony wouldn’t usually overreact and figured that he was nervous for good reason. “But I’ve never heard of a bond being broken. They couldn’t even if they wanted to. It’s been more than a year anyway, so it’s done.”

“I’d be more relieved about that if Dumbledore wasn’t planning to send Harry back to his Aunt’s,” Tony scowled. “I’m not about to let that happen.”

Peter recognized the look and nodded. “And you need help trying to get him out. I don’t know.”

“It has to be something _airtight_ ,” Tony looked at the Trio. “Peter, you don’t know how badly they want him to go back.”

“He really can’t go back,” Hermione added. “They’re horrible.”

“How bad?” Peter trained his eyes on the Trio and not on his cousin, who was now watching the small umbrellas float in what remained of his tea. He didn’t know if Tony told them, but they wouldn’t hear it from him.

“Fourth Year.”

Peter went rigid, eyes snapping to Tony’s serious gaze as he vaguely noticed the Trio exchanging looks with each other.

That changed things. And when Tony emphasized the need for something that Harry couldn’t be forced out of…

“Harry,” he finally broke their gaze. “I will find whatever loophole I can to keep you from being separated from the others. I don’t know what’s going on like Tony does, but I find that he’s usually right about these things. If there is a way, one of us will find it.”

“And I really don’t think reporting those Muggles will do a lick of difference, either,” Tony shook his head.

“What happened in Fourth Year?” Harry had to ask, curiosity obvious in the Trio’s eyes.

Only six people alive knew what had actually happened and four of them truly knew every detail. The other two were not about to talk to even _speculate_.

Peter had been on the sidelines and he still experienced some of it. Or enough to paint his own picture. That had been more than enough.

“The story gets mixed in translation,” Tony glibly shrugged. “Maybe we’ll let you in on it one day.”

They sat for a few moments before Hermione noted the time.

“They’ll be wondering where we are,” she told them.

“Yeah, I should probably run out to the store for dinner,” Tony agreed.

“Mum’s not doing it?” Ron seemed surprised.

“She’s been _summoned_ ,” Tony shrugged. It obviously meant something to them because Peter watched realization dawn on their faces.

Peter shrugged it off, rubbing his hands together as he focused on the important part of the conversation. “So, Tony. What’s it going to be tonight?”

“You’ll have to find out with everyone else,” Tony shrugged, not giving a single clue away.

“Oh, we’re in for a treat,” Peter gushed to the kids. “Have you had his cooking?”

“No,” Harry shook his head. “Mrs. Weasley’s cooked everything we’ve eaten. Except when Tony made porridge in Fifth Year.”

“That was good,” Ron told Tony. “I wonder why Mum hasn’t let you cook anything else.”

“Probably worried that Tony might try to poison us,” Harry smiled wryly.

“I believe it,” Tony shrugged.

“Why didn’t we tell them what Sixth Year was really about, again?” Hermione frowned.

“Mrs. Weasley, mostly,” Tony told her. “Not that it matters anymore. Carlin’s dead, remember? It’s easier to have them focus on Harry than worrying over all three of you. Well, more than they probably already are.”

Peter heaved himself off his seat as the others stood, too. “Guess we should still be going, huh?” he let the Trio lead them out of the tent and hugged his cousin tight before they separated. “I’m not upset,” he assured the four of them, smiling stealing across his face. “I don’t quite know what I’m feeling right now, but it’s not bad. Really.”

“You sure?” Ron eyed him.

“Well, since I’ve been assured that I can’t lie to save my life,” he and Tony snorted, “you can trust me on this. I’m more than okay.”

“Maybe not to save yours,” Tony teasingly whispered into his ear, making Peter let out a chuckle.

“Get moving, DiNozzo,” Peter gently pushed him toward the house. “We have apples to collect.”

Peter and the Trio eventually rejoined the others and began filling their own buckets.

“Where’s Tony?” Ginny wanted to know.

“Getting dinner ready,” Peter told her, already salivating at the thought.

“Really?” Palmer grinned. “Isn’t he just incredible? Abby’s always wanting his grilled cheese. She claims that he makes the best ones.”

“His hamburgers are homemade,” Peter would have laughed at the Marine who was practically drooling, but he was kind of in the same boat.

“And you know, I’ve never been able to figure it out,” Peter shook his head. “But they are _delicious_. Merlin knows where he got to be so good at cooking. I certainly can’t.”

They filled buckets in silence as they mused what Tony could be cooking.

Peter was just daydreaming about Tony’s spaghetti when he noticed Harry frowning.

“Hey, Ron,” he spoke before Peter could ask. “I’ve been meaning to ask you, but has Hedwig been here? She left ages before I did.”

“No,” Hermione shook her head. “She’s not been.”

The others nodded in agreement.

“Yeah,” Palmer nodded. “I’ve seen Pig and wondered about your owl.”

“I hope she’s alright,” Harry sighed.

“Yeah, Hermione, I need to talk to you about that ball of feathers,” Peter huffed as he remembered trying to catch it for the letter from Hermione. It was a good thing that Neal and Mozzie hadn’t decided to drop by, because he could just imagine what he looked like as he used a butterfly net so as not to hurt the energetic owl.

“Think Padfoot chose to give you that owl because of trying to catch it all the time?” Harry grinned.

“He’s a Marauder,” Ron rolled his eyes. “I wouldn’t put it past him.”

They were talking about owls when Tony showed up with a surprising visitor.

“Fawkes!” Peter watched Harry grin as the Phoenix trilled a greeting.

Peter followed his gaze to see that Dumbledore’s phoenix was carefully perched on Tony’s shoulder and Harry immediately reached out a hand to pet it. It nuzzled his hand as Ginny and the other two chimed their own hellos.

“That – that’s a phoenix,” Deeks gawped.

“Yeah,” Mac smiled slightly. She reached a hand out when Tony got closer and her smile grew when it stretched its neck out for her.

Peter and Palmer inched closer as well, the former not really being that well acquainted with the rare creature.

“Looks like it just came back from a Burning Day,” Harry observed. “See how shiny the feathers are?” He told them about meeting Fawkes in his Second Year.

“It showed up not too long ago,” Tony told them once they had settled down a little bit. “Ron’s mom just left. Harry, Dumbledore’s found Hedwig at Hagrid’s.”

“She’s at Hogwarts?” he blinked as Gabby shyly pet the fire bird. “That’s unusual.”

“What’s even more unusual is that she’s refusing to leave the Hut. She won’t come up to the school and will take off if anyone even thinks of trying to bring her up.”

“That’s really odd,” Hermione frowned. “Why would she do that?”

“I’ve never heard of an owl acting that way,” Ginny shrugged.

“I don’t know of any that would,” Mac blew out a breath as she put her hands on her hips. “Something must be going on if she’s acting like that. Maybe something related to the school.”

Tony shrugged. “Dumbledore wanted to let you now. Fawkes is gonna head back soon. Peter, in about an hour, I want you to come to the kitchen. I have something for you to try.”

“I’ll remind him,” Mac assured.

And she did, once they decided that the apples could wait for later tonight and everyone headed to the tent to change into their swimming gear while Peter made for the Burrow.

Almost immediately, the smell of sauce met his nose when he walked into the kitchen and he lit up when he noted what the kitchen utensils were up to.

“You spoil me,” he beamed. “You really do.”

“Come over here and taste this,” Tony held out a small spoon. “I can’t decide what’s missing.”

Peter stuck it in his mouth and shook his head after a moment. “You know I’m crap in the kitchen. It tastes the same as always: Incredible.”

“Yeah,” he frowned, “but there's something…”

Peter took a seat at the table and watched Tony putter for a long moment. “You didn’t really ask  me here for tasting, did you?”

Tony whirled around to face him. “You’re going to think I’m nuts, but it’s been bothering me for a while,” he pulled on his hair in frustration. “After the Trio graduates, I just have this horrible feeling that I’m never going to hear from them as much, never mind talk. I’m probably never going to _see_ them again!”

“Now, wait,” Peter held his hands out. “Tony, where is this coming from?”

“I can’t tell you,” he shook his head after a moment. “But there are people who can keep me from them and it’s like they’re waiting for the kids to graduate so that they could start weaning us from each other.”

“You don’t honestly think that’s going to happen, do you?” Peter frowned.

“I don’t know! I really don’t, but I’ve just had this feeling and I don’t like it.”

Peter honestly didn’t know what to tell him, except, “Wait and see. Keep writing to them while they’re at school this year and maybe visit. They seem determined to get Harry away from his family, so I doubt they’ll let you go that easily.”

“Maybe so, but their mail can be intercepted.”

“I know you well enough to know that you don’t start getting ahead of yourself unless you have reason to, so I’m not going to call you paranoid. But, you could wait until it gets to that point. And just think. You have the means that they don’t. You said Dumbledore’s been asking you to the school almost since they started, so it wouldn’t be much of a problem for you to sneak in visits on holidays or something.”

“No, yeah, you’re right,” he breathed, visibly calming. “Sorry. I just needed to get that out.”

Peter was well aware of that, too. Tony was going to be alright now that Peter was in on this secret.

He was chuckling as a hunk of cheese started a conga line when Tony turned back to him.

“What do you know about blood protection?”

* **

Harry sighed as he watched most of the others splash at each other.

“It should be almost ready for dinner,” Hermione spoke up on his right. “Neville’s not here yet.”

“No one said he wouldn’t be here before dinner,” Ron pointed out on their left.

Harry hummed and nodded. “I know the Order is mostly tolerant of Tony,” he told them, “and I know that they don’t mind us hanging out with him, but what would our excuse be after we graduate?”

“I find it hard to believe that they would try to keep us from him, but I suppose I shouldn’t put it past them,” Hermione shook her head, her hair up from the threat of getting wet. “I mean, there are a few who don’t like outsiders knowing about the Order and I know that Moody’s been thinking of asking to join – or I suspect -, but what do you think will happen when he refuses?”

The Order was capable of things that Harry couldn’t imagine in his wildest dreams.

They could very well erase Tony’s memories and then Tony would probably be an emotional meltdown waiting to happen. Harry didn’t want that to happen to him since so many things already had.

“Tonks, Sirius and Remus won’t let that happen, right?” Ron put out there.

“I guess we could ask,” Hermione looked down at the water’s surface. “Just to be sure.”

“We’ll ask Remus or Sirius the next time we see them,” Harry decided. Tonks was really great, but he didn’t trust her as much as he did the last of the Marauders.

The entire group stayed out until Neville Longbottom came to tell them to get ready for dinner.

They stayed at the tent for a few minutes so that introductions could get out of the way and they headed for the house when they were ready.

When they got in, Harry blinked at what was on the table.

“Pizza? Alright!” Deeks cheered, immediately claiming a spot.

“Pizza?” Gabby followed curiously.

“Pick a pizza,” Tony invited. “There’s more than enough for everyone to share.”

Harry looked down the table at the round, featureless circles of plain dough and picked one at random, Palmer standing next to him.

“Okay, this is how it’s going to work,” Tony called for attention. “Tell the spoon how much sauce you want and then you put the cheese on. If you want any other topping, go ahead and choose it.”

Peter demonstrated with the spread already supplied and Harry chose a few toppings after Palmer had the pizza drowning in sauce.

“That looks a bit much, Palmer,” Hermione looked over from her shared one with Gabby.

“Are you kidding?” Deeks snorted. “Too much isn’t enough!” The blond had just as much sauce dumped on his and Ron’s pizza.

Gabby looked between hers and theirs uncertainly. The sauce spoon came back and put some more on.

Harry had fun making his own pizza – they all did, bickering good-naturedly over which topping or combination was the best and why -, but as the night wore on, he began to notice that both Tony and Peter seemed almost… distracted.

He couldn’t begin to imagine the reason why, but he wondered if it was something about a case, maybe.

Ron and Hermione started noticing, too, when the pizzas were ready to eat.

“Mm,” Ginny almost inhaled a slice. “It _is_ good!”

Harry had never really had pizza before and, therefore, had had no inkling whatsoever of what he was missing. The tangy, yet somehow sweet, sauce really did grab your attention.

“You need to cook more,” Ron told Tony. “Mum would probably like a break once in a while.”

“It won’t be until after the wedding, I’m afraid,” Tony lifted a shoulder. “Dumbledore just had the chance to distract your mother and he took it. She’s probably worried sick that you aren’t eating enough.”

“It certainly looks like enough,” Mac chuckled at Deeks as he sank back in his chair with a delighted sigh.

“I don’t think you’ll be getting rid of me now,” he cheerfully informed Tony. “Not if you always cook this good.”

After the inevitable pizza sharing with everyone else – and Hermione agreed that no pizza was a good pizza without half a pot of sauce drowning it -, they all sat around the living room, relaxing over tea and biscuits (“Why can’t you call them cookies like everyone else?”) and listening to the radio.

“I think it’s going to be an early night,” Mac sighed. “It feels so good to just relax and not think about work.”

“Tell me about it,” Deeks relaxed on the floor.

“And me,” Palmer looked half asleep already.

Tony and Peter, Harry noticed, seemed off in their own worlds as they watched the banked fire. He was honestly pretty sure that they were drinking out of empty cups.

Once enough time had passed, Tony took Gabby aside for a few minutes and whispered something in her ear. Whatever it was, she seemed kind of disappointed before nodding.

Mrs. Weasley and a few Order members, including Dumbledore, came back and introduced themselves to everyone else.

“Thank you for letting me know about Hedwig,” Harry told the Headmaster, who just chuckled good-naturedly.

“Think nothing of it, my boy. I knew you would worry. Ah, Tony. Did you, perhaps…” his smile grew almost pleadingly.

“Yeah, it’s in a box on the stove,” Tony flicked a hand toward the kitchen.

“What?” Neville asked.

“He wanted pizza, too,” the others laughed as those who knew him simply shook their heads.

That was apparently all Dumbledore wanted, trotting back with box in hand and already with sauce in beard. “Delicious as always,” he praised before leaving the Burrow.

“I sometimes wonder if that’s why he’s constantly asking me over,” Tony deadpanned, amusement twitching his lips.

“It iz good, Tony,” Gabby agreed.

The Witch had to go home for the night, but she would be back for breakfast first thing in the morning.

“Fleur needs her help with a few finalists for the dresses,” Mrs. Weasley explained. “It looks like she’ll be choosing any moment now.”

Tony had been sketching constantly for the past few days and Gabby had peered over his shoulder before she left with a thoughtful look on her face. He flipped it closed and magically sent it back to the tent as he stood.

The group returned to the tent after saying their goodnights to the Order members – not like they actually knew the Order existed, but still -, but Harry was surprised when Tony and Peter grabbed the Trio and frog marched them into the orchard past the constantly rebuilt wall, which was losing extra apples to build with after all the apples that had been falling from the trees already, until they were as far from any kind of interruption short of attack.

“Is, um, everything alright?” Hermione looked from one cousin to the other in curiosity.

“Is everything alright?” Tony nodded slightly to himself. “Is everything _alright_. Well, Mi, I’m gonna have to say _no_. Everything is _not_ alright and do you want to know why? We’re _screwed_ , that’s why. _Screwed_. And I am very sorry about not saying anything before we got ourselves married because I am freaking out right now. I screwed up and we’re paying for it. I’ve been thinking of something to get you as far from your Aunt as I can get you, but nothing’s airtight enough to get you there long term. We’re gonna need Donners in on this, because maybe there’s something he knows that could do something. I swear to you, I had no idea and you know what they say about hindsight being 20/20. I thought the marriage bond was just going to make the four of us need to keep in touch until this thing dissolves, but now I feel incredibly responsible for not researching this completely –”

“Tony!” Hermione grabbed the panicky Italian as he paced by and held his arm to interrupt his alarming speech. “You are not making any sense at all. Now, calm down and breathe.”

“Hah! I’m trying. I really, really am, but it’s not working.”

“Peter,” Harry turned to the solemn older man. “What’s going on?”

“You can’t go back,” Peter sighed.

“We know that,” Ron scoffed. “Try to get it past everyone’s thick skulls and they’ll still think the blood protection –”

“Ron, you don’t understand,” Tony wrapped a hand around the redhead’s arm. “ _There is no blood protection._ ”

Harry felt a stone drop into his stomach as ice filled his veins.

“What?!” Hermione gasped. “But no, that can’t be –”

“Lily Potter knew about the blood protection,” Peter cut her off, bringing Harry’s attention back from trying to understand what he’d just heard. “It only stands to reason that she would also know about the effect that marriage bonds would have on it.”

Harry shook his head slightly to keep his head clear enough to listen to Peter’s words.

“Both were created decades apart, but marriage bonds were created with blood protection in mind. Back when there was a reason for blood protection, marriage bonds were just that. Eventually, there came a problem with conflicting agendas on both sides. Blood protection is usually for the children, yes, but that couldn’t be broken even with the child coming of Age. So, marriage bonds began to be created to… cut ties, if you will. If a child with blood protection invoked chose to enter a marriage bond, it was assumed that the older spouse would have the means and resources to keep the other safe. A year from the bond’s conception would be enough time to get things in order. The blood protection would then transfer itself to the family of the oldest of the pair in order to keep the safety net going. Because Tony is the oldest, the blood protection is now latent until such a time that I will need to step up to take over.”

“But Lily Potter cast the spell,” Hermione countered. “Harry’s Aunt is Lily’s only relative and we aren’t related to Harry or each other, never mind the two of you.”

“Yes, and that is taken care of in the set used to create the bond in the first place. Because of the concern that the family of the caster could potentially harm the marriage bond – and therefore strain family relations -, there is something used to marry both parties that allows the bond to break the protection down enough to substitute blood for the magical mixing process. Because Tony has spent so much time with me during the course of our lives, that protection has rebounded from Harry’s Aunt to the closest relative of the oldest married party. That is me. Then, should Tony be unable to care for you, the blood protection would reactivate under the new situation. It’s extremely complicated to fully explain, but if I am taken out, then any blood ritual participants performing with either Tony or myself would be brought in and the oldest of them would then care for you. Since Ron is the next oldest, he would then take over the responsibility should the line of the first oldest be taken out completely. During the Black Death, this was an enormous concern. Now, however, it’s extremely doubtful that any of that would occur. So, you can’t go back, Harry, because there is literally nothing there for you.”

Harry honestly didn’t know what to think.

He was relieved that he was no longer obligated to suffer further abuse, but everyone was still under the impression that he was protected.

“Someone would have noticed, though, right?” Ron looked from Tony to Peter. “The protection wards going down, I mean.”

“Because Tony covered all his bases – and was incredibly successful I might add -, there is no way that anyone can tell unless they have signed Tony’s notebook. I checked it myself. And there is a chance that the Death Eaters may call the bluff or could even attack regardless, claiming Imperio influence. There is no way of knowing. The bottom line is that Harry is in the safest place in the world right now here with the four of you together.”

“You said blood ritual relatives,” Hermione drew up enough clarity to faintly point out as their new situation began sinking in. “Who –”

“Sparky made me, Pin and Booker do it in Third Year,” Tony cut in. “Pin’s the oldest out of the four of us. You would more likely go to him first. I swear to you, if I had known –”

“But you didn’t,” Harry finally spoke. “You didn’t know when we used the set and you didn’t know when the first year passed. Not like any of us could actually do anything at that point, anyway. None of us anticipated this, so I do not – and will not – put the blame on you. On someone else maybe, but never you. Any of you,” he added, directing it to the others. “What’s done is done and we can only move on from it, okay? That means that I need to go somewhere else. We just need to come up with a way to do that. That is all we can do. So. Let’s just focus on that.”

“Harry’s right, Tony,” Hermione looked as shocked as he felt. “You are not the one to blame here. You can’t take the blame for something you didn’t know would happen. Remember, the sets of the families that still have them can be anything. I’m not exactly sure how I feel about this new information, but I do know that blame isn’t going to solve what’s already happened.”

Ron agreed. “Each bond is different, remember? I think that would take care of it.”

Tony looked them over, looking far older than Harry knew him to be. “But I am sorry we’ve been dragged into this.”

“At least we’re not alone,” Hermione shakily walked over and hugged him. “We’ve got each other and Peter and Sherlock and Agent Donners. We are going to find a way to get through this.”

“She’s right,” Ron hugged his other side. Harry silently hugged them and Peter just wrapped his arms around them all.

Harry felt so much, but he felt overwhelming relief that the others were in the same boat as he was. They were all here and determined to see this out.

It wasn’t going to be easy, but Harry had had an inkling of that around First Year. He hadn’t had an easy life of it even before he got his letter.

There was nothing he could do with what had happened the past couple years, but he could handle how he reacted to it. There was nothing for it. Whether he wanted it or not, blood protection had changed as the marriage bond solidified.

He was in this for at least nine more years. Tony, Ron and Hermione were, too. They would have to take their circumstances as they came.

Harry couldn’t have found a better trio of friends to be married to.

* * *

 


	12. Thursday Part I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, after RL thoroughly depressed me this week, I'm posting a few chapters today. 
> 
> A freshman that went to my old high school was bullied and she couldn't take it anymore, which brings to mind the upcoming sequence I have for this story. And then I found out that our grandmas are friends and the daughter of one of my mom's friends actually went to school with the freshman's mother. It's just been that kind of week.
> 
> This also will end up playing a part in 'Secrets' and I'm kind of sorry for it, but when me and my sister went to the vigil, one of my sister's friends brought up a good point and the Muse kind of took off with it. So.
> 
> If you suspect that someone you know is being bullied or you witness it, please step in. Tell them that they can talk to you and go to someone who can help. Keep pushing the issue until action is taken. If someone is the bully, but probably doesn't realize it, let them know that they need to change. It's okay to be different and that's what we really need to start making people understand whether they think it's 'wrong' or not.
> 
> And now that I've depressed everybody, let's get going.

_He was in a pretty backyard garden._

_The scents of flowers blended together in a pleasing feast for his nose and his eyes took in all the colors he was smelling. There was red and blue, vibrants and pale and something in between that looked just as pretty._

_He enjoyed the sunshine as he walked on grass a healthy green that grew throughout the garden._

_Butterflies flitted from one bunch of flowers to another and he smiled happily as he looked around to see what else he could see._

_It didn’t take long for him to notice that there was a sculpture of a flower, but it wasn’t anything he’d ever seen before._

_The sculpture was vaguely familiar somehow, but it was built in a similar way to a table almost. The flower was facedown, being supported by four pillars on the bottom, much like how a table was made, except this particular sculpture seemed to have been created for the purpose of shelter and there did appear to be something it did well since Harry couldn’t see under it. It was pitch black  under there._

_Oh, but it did look nice and cool under there and he **was** feeling sort of warm._

_Almost as if asked, a slight breeze came through the garden and Harry heard a faint violin drifting toward him. It sounded like it was coming from far away and he figured it was from the house or something._

_The breeze felt nice and he wavered about sitting under the sculpture to enjoy the nice breeze and the violin bit that did sound lovely, even if he had no idea about anything classical._

_Although, maybe the person – who he was almost certain was there – didn’t want to entertain company or was catching a nap of their own. Deciding to wander some more, Harry turned back to the garden and was about to move on when his sharp green eyes caught sight of something hidden that didn’t belong there._

_Vaguely aware that the violin was becoming sharper and more closer, he carefully stepped inside the flowerbed and crouched down to study his find._

_It was a flower._

_Well, obviously, since it was a garden, but this one wasn’t flourishing like its brethren. It was withered and dried._

_Now, Harry didn’t much know about gardening, but he did know that gardeners took pride in their plants. So, in the midst of this beautiful, vibrant garden, what happened to this one?_

_The violinist sounded close now and Harry blinked as he looked around to find none there._

_Shrugging, he looked back at the (almost?) dead flower –_

and found himself staring up at the tent in the early morning light.

It was odd, especially when he took in the violin music that followed him out of the already half-forgotten dream.

It took Hermione moving next to him for him to realize that the music hadn’t followed him out of the dream, but that he’d followed _it_.

“What?” he rubbed his eyes and yawned before reaching for his glasses next to him.

“It’s morning,” Hermione rolled over to face him with a sleepy look. “Who’s playing?”

He rolled onto his stomach to look toward the middle of the sleeping space and made out the tall silhouette swaying with the violin music that Harry recognized as having woken him. He registered Palmer and Neville sitting up with yawns before he recognized the violinist’s curly hair.

“ _Sherlock_?”

“Sherlock?” Hermione rolled onto her stomach to look.

“Ms. Granger,” Sherlock Holmes stopped playing or the song came to a natural end. “Mr. Potter. I am pleased to see you both well.”

A groan on Harry’s other side showed Tony having recognized the voice upon waking. “It can’t be.”

“What’s going on?” Deeks sat up rubbing his eyes, hair all over the place.

“Sherlock,” Tony sat up in disbelief. “What are you even doing here?”

“Being productive,” the oldest Brit sniffed, placing his violin lovingly in its case, “which is more than I can say for the rest of you, wasting the day.”

“Wasting the – Sherlock,” Tony sputtered, “it’s… it’s … Mac.”

“0511,” came the muffled answer from the depths of the nest of blankets in the corner.

“And the sun’s not up yet,” he continued. “I told you before, just because you don’t believe in sleep doesn’t mean it’s the same for everyone. And don’t start with the ‘dull’ spiel. We all know you’re special.”

“Your tone is at odds with your words.”

“That’s called sarcasm,” Peter smiled slightly a little bit further away in his own sleeping bag.

Sherlock gave him a once over and let out a derisive sniff.

“You know,” Tony leaned back on his elbows, cutting any scathing response off at the pass. “I don’t think I want to know how you got here, but I do want you to go back to Baker Street - where you’re supposed to be – and leave us sleep in peace!”

“And here I was, hoping to surprise you,” Sherlock heaved a sigh and slumped, turning away in dejection.

All but Tony, Harry, Hermione and Peter – and Mac, who was half asleep anyway – immediately jumped to his defense.

“Oh, c’mon, mate,” Ron turned to Tony.

“Yeah,” Deeks agreed. “Have a heart.”

“Are you staying for the wedding?” Ginny rubbed her eyes.

“Nah,” Tony answered, cutting him off. “He’s a very busy man, who – if he really wants to talk – will give us about another hour so we can actually think and look presentable, Curly Top.” He smiled slightly. “I consider you a dear friend, so I’m giving you exactly two seconds to vacate the tent and take yourself elsewhere.”

“Don’t be absurd,” Sherlock frowned at him. “Two seconds is not nearly enough ti-” his grey eyes widened as he registered just _what_ was floating behind his friend as his smile dropped and green eyes narrowed.

Exactly two seconds later, Sherlock tore out of the tent, every available knife summoned racing after him.

“Wasn’t that, oh, I dunno, kinda harsh?” Deeks spoke in the ensuing silence, turning wide eyes on Tony as the Italian lay back down.

“Nah,” he lay his pillow over his face. “At this point, he expects it.”

* **

As he shuffled into the kitchen for breakfast, Ron couldn’t help wondering if the excitement was going to last until after the wedding.

If so, he kind of hoped Tony’s knife trick was a one-time event. He also wondered if Sherlock had been a target before. He certainly moved as if it were a regular occurrence.

“Do you think Sherlock’s alright?” Hermione fretted as she, Harry and Deeks followed him. Neville, Ginny, Gabby, Mac and Peter were already at the table.

“You heard him,” Deeks pointed out.

He was right. They had managed to spot Sherlock on their way in and he had assured Hermione that he had the situation under control right before a knife almost embedded itself into his shoulder instead of the tree he’d been next to.

“Besides,” Harry added. “I really don’t think Tony would let him get _too_ injured.”

Harry would know better than he would on that.

Ron took a seat beside Gabby as he caught sight of Deeks giving Peter a nervous smile.

The blond had been rather jumpy when they weren’t being put to work or when he caught himself with his own guard down, Ron knew. While Hermione may have likened his emotional depth to that of a teaspoon, Ron liked Deeks and he knew enough about things to know that Deeks must not have had a good time amongst his fellows lately. What Ron didn’t know, however, was anything about America, so maybe there were vicious Wizards and Witches where Deeks lived and went to school with that really didn’t like Muggleborns. He’d been very sad when he realized that Deeks seemed to almost shadow Hermione because of their shared status and tread carefully around the others that – thankfully - was starting to include others he didn’t know well.

Deeks looked up at that moment and smiled uncertainly at Ron, surprised when the redhead beamed back.

He thought Muggles were fascinating, so he really couldn’t understand why a majority of others were so intent to never meet one. Muggleborns were especially vulnerable to attacks due to You Know Who’s crusades against all Muggle related things and people. Ron watched Deeks flinch when Palmer happily ruffled his curls and made a promise to himself that he would take care of Deeks like Hermione fussed over Harry and like the three of them were taking care of Tony.

Well, Ron wasn’t up to being married again so soon after their first year and a half anniversary of sorts – and especially after last night’s revelation -, so he amended that he would look after Deeks _almost_ like they were taking care of Tony.

Though now that he thought of it, they weren’t doing as much for Tony as Ron liked. Harry and Hermione had that concern, too.

His mum bustled past as Tony and Sherlock finally came in, the latter sporting a neon pink plaster on his left cheek.

“So, what happened?” Peter raised a brow.

“Miscalculation,” Sherlock sniffed, throwing himself into an empty seat.

“Losing your touch there, Holmes,” Tony teased, sitting nearby. The dark haired Brit looked disgusted with himself, allowing a tea cup to settle in front of him.

They went on to eat breakfast while Sherlock took a glance around, grey eyes snapping to Ron’s blue, surprising him with the sudden contact.

Ron curiously held Sherlock’s gaze, wondering what the older man was looking for. He must’ve found it, he supposed, because he gave a nod in approval before his gaze moved on.

Ron blinked as he found Sherlock’s gaze on his mum for almost a minute before grey eyes met Tony’s green and it seemed like a whole conversation took place, though one glanced at Gabby with speculation more than the other.

Eventually, however, talk turned to the wedding and Sherlock sat up with interest, which didn’t escape Tony’s notice.

“Who said you were invited?” Tony groused.

“Have you ever solved a case at a wedding?” Hermione wanted to know.

“As a matter of fact, we have,” Tony recalled. “It was one of our earliest cases together.”

Ron and the others sat, entranced, as Tony spun the tale. Sometimes, his magic made visual aids to make the story even better to imagine. The Italian certainly had a talent for story telling; the others had paused in eating to listen.

When the story reached its end and the culprit revealed to be an obsessed schoolmate – Tony, Mac, Palmer and the Trio exchanging ironic looks -, Peter pointed out something that made Sherlock’s eyes go distant.

“Thanks a lot, cuz,” Tony drawled, rolling his eyes. “Now he’ll want to revisit the scene, drag me along, conveniently forget everything _but_ his phone, go off by himself to solve three other cold cases just to prove that he can and then drop me twenty feet down a mineshaft.”

“Which would _not_ have happened had he been paying attention in the first place,” Sherlock rolled his eyes.

“What the hell part of ‘don’t let go of the rope’ did you not understand?”

“As a fully grown Wizard – fully capable of taking care of himself -, why ever would you need my help?”

“… you deleted the whole magical revelation thing two years later, didn’t you?”

Ron caught Hermione’s eye and smiled slightly in response to her grin. Turns out she was right about them being brothers (of a sort, since they didn’t really look alike) as evidenced by the oft-argued subject, the tone a mix of fond, exasperated and good-natured. The pair executed the argument so amusingly that almost all of them were laughing, especially when Tony kept giving them put upon looks.

Ginny glanced up to see Mum nearby. “Oh, Mum, there’s some things that we still need before we go back to school.”

“We were talking about a trip to Diagon Alley,” Mac told her. “It wouldn’t be any trouble to take them along.”

“I appreciate the offer,” Mum shook her head. “But I’m needed in France –”

“Come now, Madam,” Sherlock immediately sprung up. “Surely you have so much to do that you would be grateful to highly capable adults like Tony and company for keeping an eye on the young ones?”

“Yeah,” Harry agreed. “We’ll be fine with them.” Ron and the others added their own agreements before he and his friends watched in utter amazement as the adults almost effortlessly steamrolled right over any possible argument that Mum could have come up with.

“Plus,” Ginny mused, “some guests should be coming around tonight.”

“And what sort of hostess would be remiss in her duties to her future family members?” Sherlock prompted.

“Not a very good one,” Deeks answered.

“Besides,” Peter added innocently, “my wife would be appalled at the thought of leaving guests all to their own devices while she supervised fully capable young adults who just want to get out of the house.”

Ron shook his head as his mum headed to the study to check on a few things. He, more than anyone, knew that there _were_ dangers out there, yes, but he also knew that he and the group around him could take care of themselves. While having the Order was all well and good, he and the others were tired of being treated like useless children, grounded to the house and left to fight boredom while the grown-ups talked serious business, always ready to scold them for trying to help.

“That was brilliant,” Ginny beamed at the older six in the room.

“All in a day’s work,” Mac demurred, smiling almost coyly. Ron had to wonder what she meant by that.

“Well, cuz,” Tony raised a brow at Peter. “Looks like you _can_ lie to save your life.”

“Yeah, well, I’ve seen what happens when adults try to smother kids in supervision,” he dryly returned, sipping from his coffee. “It took me and Shep the better part of three hours to figure out where you four disappeared to. And quite honestly, I’m not sure I want to know what happened between you giving Pin’s uncle the slip and us crashing into you at the park.”

They all looked at Tony, who ducked his head with a mumble.

“It’s the same every time that’s asked between him and the other three,” Peter shrugged. “I can’t make heads or tails of it.”

Tony muttered something that sounded along the lines of ‘you wouldn’t believe me if I told you’ before he frowned at Sherlock. “What are you doing here, anyway?”

“Yeah,” Peter crinkled his brow as brown eyes swept over the Muggle. “Shouldn’t you be under some kind of house arrest? The court case wasn’t that long ago.”

“Court case?” Harry straightened in alarm. “What court case?”

“Legal issues,” Sherlock sipped his tea. “Dull.”

“What sort of issues?” Neville eyed him warily.

“Things you’re not to concern yourself with.”

“Yeah,” Tony shook his head. “Sherlock is being investigated as a fraud.”

“A _fraud_?” Harry stared incredulously. “Tony, Sherlock _can’t_ be – me and Hermione –”

“ _I_ know he’s not a fraud and you two know that, but we can’t do anything about it. Lestrade is up for review, too.”

Ron didn’t know much about Muggles – especially their laws -, but Ron knew that Sherlock couldn’t be any kind of fraud if his best mates were upset at these accusations.

Hermione stewed in her chair before Peter sighed. “My time’s coming up, so could we talk about something else?”

They finished breakfast and Tony, Gabby and Sherlock disappeared while the others went back to the tent to rest before doing anything else.

“I think he’s up to something,” Peter told the Trio as they sat with the sleeping bags.

“What, do you think?” Hermione asked.

“I’m not sure, but I’ll be sorry to miss the big reveal. Him and the other three always _did_ have great surprises.”

“A prank?” Ron grinned, no doubt wondering what kind of trouble a young Tony had been capable of.

“A few times,” Peter grinned back. “Can’t say it wasn’t deserved, though. I’m just sorry I couldn’t do anything without getting caught.”

“How do you mean?” Hermione tilted her head.

“Well,” Peter leaned back on his hands. “The year I graduated, a guy transferred in from another school. Tony and his friends just adored the kid I mentored in Third Year – that’s John Sheppard -, who also happened to be Tony’s mentor in his First. The kid who transferred in just seemed to have it in for my poor First Year and the kids took very strong offense to that. I knew that kid was a bully, but it was hammered home one night at dinner. I don’t know how they did it – and I know they did it -, but the four of them turned the entire hall blood red and midnight black. During dinner, the colors started tormenting the bully, but, at the very end, all that red began to turn to writing that listed every offense committed since the bully got there. The teachers never found out who did it because everyone else didn’t want Tony and friends getting into trouble. One suspected, I think, but he never said anything.”

“Like when the twins left school,” Hermione mused. Harry and Ron nodded, too, remembering Fifth Year.

The others were in the sitting room, so Hermione felt comfortable to confide, “What are we going to do after graduation, Peter?”

“I don’t know,” he sighed. “Tony said something similar, but I still have no idea. He said something about not feeling confident in your continued correspondence. Evidently, there are people worrying Tony with their supposed connections who might block the four of you from keeping in touch.”

“Which is a very legitimate concern,” Hermione winced. “We certainly wouldn’t put it past them.”

“But we’ll be alright,” Ron felt the panic come back every time this subject was brought up. “I mean, with all of us putting our heads together, we can figure something out by the end of the year.”

“I can’t claim to really understand,” Peter rubbed his face tiredly. “But you three seem just as concerned. I’ll look into this, but I can’t promise anything. I can look into this because Merlin knows we can’t let you be ripped apart and we won’t let you. Okay? I can promise that we will exhaust every option.”

“I guess we’ll see,” Harry told him. Ron squeezed his arm, not liking the bleak tone.

“Tony said that he’ll kidnap us if it comes down to it,” Ron told Peter.

“I know nothing,” Peter smiled slightly.

They rejoined the others long minutes later and Tony, Sherlock and Gabby returned not long after that.

“So, what’re we doing now?” Deeks wanted to know as Tony counted them.

“A game.”

“Mm,” Sherlock nodded, obviously already in on it. “This will be interesting. The children against the adults.”

Mac shook her head. “That wouldn’t be fair if the six of us were on the same team.”

“Neville can be on mine,” Deeks probably still didn’t have any idea what was going on as he clapped Ron’s dorm mate to him. “Then Ginny, Palmer, Mac and Gabby.”

“Which would leave us, then,” Peter seemed to get it, too, as he rubbed his hands together.

Still confused, Ron looked around. “What’s it, then?”

“Water guns,” Palmer grinned.

“We’ll have to switch it up later,” Tony mused. “Ole Curly Top and I have a score to settle.”

“Long overdue,” the Detective smirked back, grey eyes glinting in what Ron thought looked like excitement.

The entire group of them headed out in their swim gear and into the orchard where they found Muggle toys in front of buckets filled with water.

Ron watched as the Americans demonstrated and felt his own excitement mix with wonder at this Muggle game.

Soon, the fierce battle was on: Tony, Peter, Sherlock, Harry, Ron and Hermione on one team against Deeks, Neville, Ginny, Mac, Palmer and Gabby on the other.

Ron had been glad to see Deeks enjoy himself as he ran after Hermione and was delighted to have Peter come to his aid many times, glad that his new cousin was warming up to them.

Eventually, however, everyone was thoroughly soaked to the bone – as well as Sherlock, whom was led on a merry chase after Tony dumped a bucket on him – and it was time to get ready for lunch and Peter’s departure.

They all helped Peter make sure he had everything before going back to the house.

“It’s been great having you,” Hermione told Peter over sandwiches.

“It was great meeting all of you,” Peter smiled back.

A few seats from Ron, Mac was recounting an overseas trip to Gabby, Palmer and Ginny.

“I think I would love to go to different countries,” Ginny smiled dreamily.

“Travel or work?” Deeks wanted to know.

“Either.”

“I remember a case last year,” Peter mused. “It was for the Agency and I couldn’t get out of it. I had to make up some story to Neal and the others about disappearing for a week. A seminar, I think was the official story. My boss knows about Magic, too.”

“How about you, Tony?” Harry turned to him. “I know you help Sherlock on some cases outside of Britain.”

“Well, there was this one case in Egypt that stands out,” Tony nodded thoughtfully.

“We went there once,” Ron remembered before Third Year. It had been fun.

“I fail to see why _any_ case in Egypt would stand out,” Sherlock nibbled on a crisp taken from Ginny’s plate. “They were all the same: Dull.”

“They usually are,” Peter shrugged.

“Well, yeah,” Tony waved a hand, “but even _you_ wouldn’t be bored while traipsing halfway across the country, carting a half-conscious, drunk and concussed curly topped beanpole who was singing ‘Sweet Caroline’ to the tune of ‘Danny Boy.’”

Peter blinked and tilted his head for a moment before bringing his cup to his mouth with a smile. “Was he at least on key?”

After lunch, they said a final goodbye to Peter, who promised the Trio that he would start thinking about their lives post-graduation as soon as possible, and waved as he disappeared into the flames of the Floo system.

And once they grabbed their own things, they were gone, too.

* **


	13. Thursday Part II

Over the course of his life, Marty Deeks had been thrown into a variety of situations both personal and professional.

His experiences in the Magical aspect – however nightmare inducing some of those were – taught him to always expect the unexpected.

In this case, however…

“I fail to see how this is _my_ fault.”

“Of course it is. It usually is, for one thing, and for another, why _else_ would be trapped inside a shed with no door?”

Deeks stood against the wall, watching Tony and Sherlock have at it. If he hadn’t known any better, he would’ve thought they hated each other’s guts. Hermione told him that they were some sort of brothers – she couldn’t decide what level that was – and he thought it made sense. They’d obviously been through a lot, after all.

Well, from what he’d gathered from their interactions since breakfast.

Hermione was standing between the pair, massaging her temples as they argued directly over her head.

Deeks smiled slightly at her before wincing as he glanced over at poor Palmer.

Harry and Ron were trying to see if they could figure out how they could get out as Gabby, Ginny, Neville and Mac tried distracting Palmer with little success.

When they had entered the Leaky Cauldron from the fireplace almost an hour ago, they had decided to take their time – maybe get some ice cream on the way back – and had just left the apothecary when Gabby realized that Sherlock had disappeared. That led Tony to start panicking – though Deeks felt that the Italian would probably take that to his grave rather than admit it – and they found the man just around the corner from the seemingly abandoned shed, which he somehow talked Neville and the girls into checking out despite Tony’s warnings.

Now they were stuck and Palmer was having a difficult time getting through it, being claustrophobic.

Deeks, however, wasn’t, so he took the time to think about those he was trapped with. It was probably a good thing that the shed seemed set to expand, though, or Deeks would start feeling uncomfortable, himself.

Sherlock was Muggle, so Deeks hadn’t felt much of a threat coming from him – or Neville, Ginny, Harry and Hermione, who was Muggleborn herself.

Tony, Mac and Ron – on the other hand – were still the ones he was on the fence about.

Tony had magic in one of his parents, but Deeks had enough experience at NorCal to know that even the Mixed folk ignored their Muggle sides to favor their ‘superior’ side. Although he now knew that a good number of them had only been following the trend, Deeks was still wary by nature. So, in Tony’s case, it was more by habit than anything else. The Italian had certainly showed himself to be a good friend – especially when he reamed Sherlock out for worrying them.

Ron was Pure, but Deeks noticed that the whole Weasley crew appeared to warm up to him. Ginny and Ron, especially, since he could tell them about Muggleborns in America. Mrs. Weasley seemed to think he was always hungry – much like Lynn, the file clerk at the office who was also a Witch, but reminded him of the grandmother he vaguely remembered – and Mr. Weasley (from the few moments he actually got some time to relax from his work) was fascinated with Muggle things in general. Deeks had given him the contact information of the Agency version of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts division and Agent Amanda Levy – who approved the exchange – was his… handler, to be honest, and she would ask him for coffee every few weeks to make sure he was doing okay as a civilian attached to NCIS. The contact he’d given Mr. Weasley belonged to one of her trusted colleagues, who had assured Deeks that he would be interested to see how Europe did what was essentially his job.

Mac – Marine Colonel Sarah Mackenzie with JAG – did have magic in other family members, but they were the minority in the overall family. She’d been incredibly kind to him, but Deeks reckoned she was more interested in hanging out with the girls – and teaming up with Hermione to get Ginny to thaw out about Gabby – to really get a reading on her. Tony had told him that she only really had a few gal friends she hung out with, so Deeks could understand her lack of wanting to deal with the guys on what was supposed to be her vacation.

The last two, Gabby and Palmer, were the ones he was completely unsure about.

Gabby didn’t seem to mind Muggleborns in general – more than once having referenced another girl at her school who was also a Muggleborn and Deeks wondered more than once if there was a sort of crush involved -, but Deeks had noticed that she appeared more concerned with the Trio when she wasn’t somewhere with Tony. Deeks had even seen the other American watching her with them with a frown. While curious, Deeks had been more preoccupied with Palmer.

Tony’s colleague was nice and all, but Deeks knew that every Pureblood like Palmer had the potential to turn on the people they claimed were friends and Deeks wondered what it would take to make Palmer reach that point. Ron didn’t strike him as that sort of Pureblood, especially when interacting with Tony, Harry and Hermione. The Trio seemed to be attached to Palmer as well, more than they were with Mac. He apparently kept in contact with them in Tony’s stead last year while the Italian had been off in locations unknown.

Coming out of his thoughts, the blond noted Tony and Sherlock now hissing at each other in Italian right before Hermione evidently had enough. She threw her hands out, “Boys! How can anyone figure out how to leave this place if you’re going at each other’s throats? And you’re not helping poor Palmer, either, who looks just horrid.”

Tony took a few steps back until he was a good distance from Hermione and Sherlock and shook his head. “No, you’re right. Sorry, Palmer.”

“We have to figure out how to get this place to let us go,” Hermione sighed. “Now that some of us can think without an argument going on over our heads – ”

“Tony! Oh my _gosh_ , I _told_ Aidan I heard your voice, but he said it couldn’t be you since – what happened?”

Deeks calmed his heart as he recognized Sally from Boston as she stood directly behind Tony, who jolted forward and almost back to his original location before sinking down. Everyone else had been startled, too.

“Hi, Sally,” Harry gave her a smile.

Deeks waved as she whirled around.

“Harry and Deeks, too?” she grinned. “Wow. I hit the Jackpot.”

“You know her?” Ginny frowned at Harry.

“She’s one of Tony’s friends. I met her before I got to the Burrow.”

After everyone had introduced themselves – including Sherlock, who was kind of at a disadvantage as a Muggle -, Sally looked around and shrugged. “Seems like you guys found yourselves in a mess.”

“You aren’t by yourself, right?” Tony put his hands on his hips, recovered from his earlier shock.

“No. Josh and Aidan are here, too. They were outside a few minutes ago.”

“Go find them and we’ll let them try to see if they can get us out.”

They ruled out a timed spell by the time she got back. It didn’t matter after that since the door reappeared as soon as Josh and Aidan got near it.

Palmer was the first one out and Deeks had to feel sorry for him.

“Good to see you again,” Deeks clapped Josh on the arm.

“You, too, Detective,” he smiled slightly.

Another round of introductions resulted in an odd look from Aidan and yet another from Josh.

Deeks noticed Sherlock’s phone out and the Brit’s dark look at it, and remembered Peter telling them that Sherlock was under investigation.

“Tony, a word,” Sherlock glanced up.

“Yeah, just a second,” he told him before turning back to Aidan. “You three can stick around and hang out with us.”

“Probably for about an hour,” the Vampire conceded. “We need to get back for our shift.”

Sally appeared next to Deeks. “We were bored, so Aidan got to bring us here. It’s a nice place.”

“It is,” Deeks agreed.

“ _Now_ , Tony,” Sherlock scowled, returning to the shed.

“Just a minute,” he sighed. “We were just heading over to Flourish and Blotts if you’re interested.”

“ _Tony_.”

“Yes, dear,” he smiled slightly before following him and closing the shed door after him, leaving everyone else to stare at each other in puzzlement.

“Someone should probably stay to let them out,” Josh looked around with his arms crossed.

“We don’t really,” Ginny shrugged.

“Oh?” Gabby tilted her head. “And why iz zat?”

Deeks suddenly flashed back to Gabby’s apparent fascination with the Trio and other memories came up, too: the way that the blonde would disappear to the study only to reappear before Mrs. Weasley _every_ _time_ ; Gabby’s insistence to stay with the group when she and Tony weren’t off somewhere doing Merlin knew what; and especially Tony’s narrowed eyes following Gabby out of the kitchen with a frown. Deeks wasn’t a good detective for _nothing_.

Ginny opened her mouth right as the pieces clicked into place and Deeks all but Apparated to the redhead’s side to put an arm around her shoulders with a grin.

“Now, Gin,” he squeezed her and completely forgot about playing it safe. “Don’t go spilling American secrets. Besides, I’m sure Sally can check on them in fifteen minutes or so. Or one of us can go see if they want out while the rest of us are at the store. We’ve got it covered, Gabby and Josh. In fact, Neville, why don’t you and Palmer lead the way?”

He shooed them off before falling into step with the Trio.

“What was that?” Ron frowned at him.

“Well, I noticed that you have a small radio you guys try not to use. Kinda saw it briefly, but no one else was there,” he assured.

“Tony gave them to us,” Hermione frowned. “And we would rather not have anyone else know about them.”

“Especially Mum and the others,” Ron scowled.

Deeks wasn’t entirely sure why they would need radios to begin with – or what they could do -, but he understood it was _Harry_ _Potter_ so what could it hurt to have a way of communication to relay information with a trusted person on the other end? Besides, Tony knew what he was doing, so Deeks wouldn’t spare another thought on it.

“And I don’t think they suspect a thing, but – and I hate to be critical – you might want to keep a lid on it until you know for _certain_ that you can trust people to not rat you out.”

“A lot of our classmates know about it after Fifth Year,” Hermione told him. “Neville and Ginny, too.”

“Yeah, but they probably don’t want Ron’s mother to know, either.”

“We made them be quiet,” Ron assured.

“Does Gabby know about them?”

Harry’s green eyes studied him from under his fringe. “You think she should?”

Deeks smiled down at the street as Ron and Hermione both looked at him sharply.

“Why shouldn’t she?” Hermione frowned. “She’s going to be Ron’s new sister, after all.”

Deeks thoughtfully twisted his mouth in thought. He wasn’t sure if Tony had told them about what Deeks _knew_ he knew, so he didn’t quite know what to tell them. “Well, yeah… but… best to think twice on that, ya know?”

He hurried off and left the Trio frowning after him.

Tony called Hermione a half hour later.

“I’ll get them,” Deeks volunteered before taking off without getting a response. He whistled on his way to spring the other American and grinned when he opened the door to see Tony and Sherlock glaring at each other from opposite sides of the shed.

“Give my regards to the others,” the Brit haughtily sniffed as he swept past the blond.

“He’ll be alright getting out by himself,” Tony shook his head as Sherlock disappeared into the crowd. “Merlin knows he’s done it enough times, but I will say ‘Mineshaft, O wise and all-knowing Consulting Detective. Mineshaft.’ So,” he turned back to Deeks. “Where did you all end up?”

“Still at Flourish and Blotts. Uh, listen,” he decided to voice his concerns, “is something going on with Gabby? I noticed her hanging around the group even though it seemed like she didn’t want to.”

Tony studied him with sharp green eyes. “And you’ve noticed her disappearing every so often, right?”

“Mrs. Weasley probably needs to time her entrances better,” he shrugged.

He nodded. “What do you think about it?”

“Is Gabby spying on us?” Deeks came out and said it.

“I have good reason to believe so, yes.”

“But why?”

Tony glanced around before pulling him closer. “Remember when I had to go out to get another lightbulb? Well, before I left the bathroom, I overheard Gabby reporting to Mrs. Weasley about our activities. As you’ve probably already guessed, it’s a regular thing and I’m pretty sure I know why she’s been set on us, but I can’t figure out why she’s agreed to it. I mean, the kid doesn’t strike me as someone to stoop so low as to be someone’s spy and on her future family, no less.”

Alright, so Tony did know why the spying was happening at all, but Deeks maybe knew why Gabby was playing along.

“I know you’ve been busy with stuff going on behind the scenes and it’s just my take on it, but I’ve come to notice 

that there are a few times when she doesn’t seem to care about spying. Especially where Ginny’s concerned. From what I’ve seen, it’s apparent why she’s doing it.”

And it made him smile slightly when he first realized that Gabby wanted to get close to her future sister and brother. Harry and Hermione both accepted her – and Ron as well, from what Deeks observed -, but Ginny was standing her ground about the blonde witch.

“I don’t think it’s all a spy game, but I think she’s kind of happy to spend time with them. Well, the Trio more, since they accept her.”

“Wait,” Tony’s face flooded with horrified realization. “You mean Molly Weasley has been telling that poor kid to spy for her in exchange for _acceptance_?”

Deeks blinked. “Well, when you put it like that…”

“That – that _woman_ ,” Tony’s green eyes flashed. “How could she even _think_ – I think what little respect I had for her has just vanished.”

Deeks frowned. “I find it really hard to believe that she’s that cold -”

“She’s probably stringing poor Gabby along! I’ve seen her extol her sister’s every virtue and I know you have as well. It’s clear that Mrs. Weasley doesn’t approve of Fleur, so I wonder if Gabby’s decided to butter Mrs. W up to get her approval.”

“That’s just screwed up,” Deeks rubbed his mouth. Back when he was trying to fit in with the team, another agent had told him to do stuff in order to get in their good books and the blond had fallen for it hook, line and sinker until Callen caught wind of it and told Deeks in no uncertain terms that ‘if you want acceptance, you shouldn’t need to lower yourself in order to get it from people who you’re going to be trusting your life to. Start with spending time with them instead of trying to buy them over.’

“Tell me about it.”

“So, what are we going to do?” Deeks crossed his arms.

Tony thought, biting his lip as he stared into space. “I think we need to show her what acceptance is. We need to spend time as a group – a whole group – and do things. There’s also the question of what to do with her nightly meetings with Mama Weasley. I don’t think she’s aware that, now, the both of us are onto her. Gabby’s not going to go against her, because she doesn’t know any better and she wants to fit in with her new family if only to make her sister’s acceptance easier.”

“So it’s up to us to stage an intervention, huh?” he smiled widely.

“Yeah, but in a way that doesn’t tip our hand. What we need to do, first of all, is to get Gabby away from her. If I’m right, Gabby’s been ordered to keep quiet about things, so I’m thinking we start involving Gabby into our group more than usual and we start asking about what’s going on when she gets up to report.”

“I told the Trio to watch their audience when the radios come out,” Deeks told him.

“Then it probably won’t be too difficult to get them to understand that Ron’s mother may be grooming her to be a spy or something. I think I can get Mi to be low profile on things if I tell her and the boys enough to get them involved in keeping Gabby with us. Deeks, first, thank you for your insight into this. It will be up to us to make sure things go the way we want them to, but the Trio is going to need something to go on. I’m not leaving them in the dark if I can help it, but I’m also concerned that Mrs. Weasley could find us out and try to turn this whole thing on me.”

“Then let them come to their own conclusions,” Deeks suggested. “They’re smart enough.”

Tony sighed. “Come on. We need to head back.”

“Alright. But what about that ribbon thing you and Harry told me about back in L.A.?”

He snapped his fingers. “That’s an idea. We’ll need to get you, Neville, Gabby, Ginny and Mac on this. It’ll probably be tomorrow since the reception’s on Saturday and the wedding on Sunday.” His eyes narrowed. “I have something else I’m going to tell all of you and I’ll need absolute silence on it, but you’re going to need to wait until tomorrow.”

Tony and Deeks rejoined the group just as they were checking out and the blond allowed Sally to draw his attention as the Italian stepped away from him.

* **


	14. Chapter 14

“Tony,” Hermione frowned at him. “Where have you been? And where’s Sherlock?”

“Oh, he had to run. He said to tell you he would see you all later.”

Harry tilted his head at him. “Deeks said something about Gabby.”

It had made him, Ron and Hermione start thinking about the blonde’s activities.

“Yeah, well,” he grimaced. “I think we should do AJ’s ribbon thing tomorrow. About Gabby,” he stepped closer and lowered his voice. “I think – ” he suddenly looked at Ron and faltered as their eyes met. Harry exchanged looks with Hermione at the conflicted look in Tony’s eyes. “I can’t say much,” he said finally. “I just thought I would tell you that Gabby needs to spend a _lot_ of time with us. Thought I would ask your help to keep her busy.”

“Alright,” Ron shrugged in agreement.

“Is everything okay?” Harry frowned.

“You might want to keep the radios in your pockets for a – no, actually, I came up with some ideas a few months ago. When we get back to the Burrow, I’d like to take them in for some maintenance, if it’s alright with you.”

“Of course,” Hermione smiled slightly. “You just need to ask.”

“You’ll get them back for the wedding, which I’ll explain tomorrow with you and the others. As for Gabby, I’m a bit concerned about her. Mi, you did say Fleur joined the Weasleys, right? I think Gabby’s been tricked into doing an assignment of sorts on her own.”

“Tricked? By who?” Harry wanted to know, feeling anger simmering at the fact that a sweet girl was being used to achieve the goals of another.

“I kind of wish I could tell you,” Tony snuck a peek at Ron again, “but I can’t, so I won’t. If you really want to know, I think I should tell you that you might not like the answer. There will be many answers in life that you would wish you’d never found and I will not let this answer be one of them. The best I can do is to lead you toward the answer to have you draw your own conclusions.”

Seeing how conflicted the older Wizard was, Harry agreed. “Yeah, we’ve had a lot of investigating practice over the years.”

“It’s for the best,” Hermione added. “If we have questions about anything, we’ll go to you.”

“Yeah,” Ron nodded. “Can’t say I know what to look for, but it would put our Auror skills to the test.”

Tony nodded and herded them out to where the others waited for them.

While disappointed that Sherlock couldn’t stay, Harry did have fun with Sally, Josh and Aidan as the group wandered Diagon Alley before the three roommates had to return home.

They – except Sally, of course – had some ice cream before then and Harry found out that Josh liked Butterscotch ice cream and would eat it all the time if Aidan let him.

The Vampire was partial to vanilla – making Tony start choking on his chocolate in mirth – and the others had tried some of the flavors that they didn’t have in America.

Harry was sad to wave goodbye to them, but they were all assured that they would never get rid of them now (Sally’s words) and that they had better swing by for Thanksgiving. When Gabby  asked what that was, there had been horrified looks and a hurried explanation that Harry wasn’t entirely sure of himself.

When the remaining group returned to the Burrow almost an hour later, they found a houseful of both Weasleys and some of the Delacour family.

“I thought people were coming tomorrow,” Ron scowled, having never liked being blindsided like this.

It was made even worse by Mrs. Weasley telling them that their jobs were to watch the younger children in order to give the parents a break.

Harry kind of understood the need for babysitters, but he didn’t like it. Especially since he was certain that Mrs. Weasley wanted them busy to keep them out of trouble.

“Well, how is this going to work?” Mac asked, all of them trying to keep an eye on the children running around the orchard.

“They’re going to need to keep busy,” Ginny sighed. “I don’t know how games are going to help any.”

“Harry,” Hermione dragged him closer to Tony. “We married into this,” she told them quietly.

That’s right, he realized with a sinking feeling. They did.

Harry looked around at the kids with a new sense of who they were. Those were his cousins, too, and so were Gabby’s family.

That… that was a big group.

“Yeah,” Tony nodded, seeing it start sinking in. He quietly watched their energetic charges before tilting his head. “Hey,” he waved the others over. “I have an idea and I think the kids are going to like it.”

“What?” Ron wanted to know.

“Well, my friend Sparky always said that if you find yourself with unwanted responsibility, make someone regret it. I think there’s a way to do that here.”

Hermione looked doubtful. “But we might get in trouble.”

“Ron, when’re the twins supposed to get here?”

“Saturday, why?”

“Excellent. Hey, kids!” Tony called. “We have a question for you and we would like to see if you want to do it.”

Almost immediately, they were surrounded by curious children wanting to know what was going on and Harry started smiling when he caught the sparkle in his friend’s eyes.

“I know that the adults want you to be good and quiet for the wedding, right? Well, I’ll tell you that it’s _really_ boring to be good all the time, so I’ll make a deal with you. If you manage to be good until dinner, we’ll have some fun, okay?”

“What kind of fun?” one of the Weasley cousins asked, tilting her head.

Tony knelt down with a smile. “How would you like to cause some trouble?”

* **


	15. Friday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is a link to the small companion fic that will help make a lot of sense later on in this universe. Click on the underlined words to get there or scroll to the next story in the series.

The next day, Tony smiled as Palmer, Mac and Deeks helped Ginny, Gabby, Neville and the Trio start rushing the willing children off to the far end of the orchard after breakfast, much to the bewilderment of the adults.

Excellent. Everything was going according to plan.

“I have to say,” Tonks plopped down across from him in the chair Ron vacated. “I wasn’t too sure when Mrs. Weasley said that the Trio was going to be in charge of the young ones, but it looks like everything’s alright.”

“Course it is,” Tony shrugged. “As long as those three put their minds to it, they can do anything.”

“You’re good for them, you know,” the Auror smiled warmly, her hair changing to a bob with the exact shade of brown as Tony’s hair.

“Thank you,” he ducked his head, not used to compliments like that.

“I hope you continue to keep in touch with them after their graduation.”

“Really?” he stared. Her face was earnest and expression sincere, giving him no reason to doubt her. “But I thought I was some kind of security breach,” he told her, bitter tone not as much of a surprise as it probably should have been.

“Who the bloody hell told you that?” Tonks demanded, hair quickly turning red as her eyes flashed with anger. “You are as far from a breach as _I_ am. I wouldn’t trust the Trio or their friends to just any old Agent, you know. I’ve never seen Harry as happy as he is when the four of you are together in the same place. When the Trio graduate, if there’s anything I can do, just send me an owl, okay, Tony?”

“Uh, yeah,” he nodded jerkily, not completely sure how he’d won her over. “But what if you guys don’t want us getting together? And you erase my memories to make me forget them?”

Tonks stared with a lost look. “Tony,” her voice gentled as the red leached out of her hair. “What in the world are you – who gave you that idea?”

Tony must have been thrown for a loop at Tonks’ defense of him, because his eyes tracked over to Mrs. Weasley unbidden, who immediately turned away to fill someone’s cup. She’d been watching them and he knew that she was probably listening to see what they were talking about. After understanding what she was doing to Gabby, he’d lost what respect he’d had for her, but he didn’t want her knowing he and Deeks knew.

Because of his connection to Ginny and the Trio, he had decided to keep it to himself and had Deeks do the same. He didn’t want to disillusion them since they had such a high regard for her, but he meant what he said about them coming to their own conclu –

He startled violently when he suddenly found himself grabbed by the collar and dragged almost entirely across the table to end up nose to nose with the irate Hufflepuff Alumni.

“You listen to me, DiNozzo,” she hissed, eyes flashing different colors before settling on black. “I want you to keep in contact with the Trio and _damn_ whatever consequences you think might happen. I will kidnap the four of you myself if the Order decides that you are a liability. It’s not going to happen,” her grip loosened as her eyes changed color again, “but just to be sure, I’ll keep my eye on things. I know that Sirius wants you to write to him if possible and I now plan to check in on you every month if I have to. You’re really worried about this and I’ll tell my cousin to keep an ear out, too, so stop worrying and relax. Focus on now instead of later. I give you my word to keep the four of you together after graduation.”

They stared into each other’s identical green eyes for silent moments before he nodded.

“Even if that means going against their families?” he had to make sure.

“ _Especially_ if. Besides,” she released him with a grin. “Far as I’m concerned, you _are_ family.”

While he couldn’t tell her about the marriage bond – though he mentally added her to the list should the event ever need to pass -, the Auror’s feelings on the matter made something warm fill him.

“Now,” Tonks clapped her hands, eyes turning brown. “What have you been drawing that has you constantly distressed?”

Tony just smiled slightly at her, gratitude shining in his eyes. With the bond’s effects and the fact that Harry would no longer be safe at his Aunt’s house, he’d been so happy to have Peter on their side and helping come up with some idea to keep Tony with the Trio. Now, Tonks had vowed to do whatever she could to help them. She was a good person who obviously cared about Sirius and Harry to the point that she would do anything to keep Harry happy, just like his Godfather would.

She flushed under his gaze and cleared her throat. “Your sketching?” she prompted.

“Mm? Oh, right,” he shook his head and picked his sketchbook from beside him to give it to her. “Just a little thing.”

Tonks flipped through until she got to his latest project. “Wow,” she whistled. “I’m impressed.”

It was something he’d been tinkering with since arriving at the Burrow. Since Fleur had yet to pick a dress, Tony had started drawing Hermione as a bridesmaid complete with hairstyle. On the next page, he’d drawn Gabby and Ginny with similar styles to Hermione and he ended up drawing Fleur, too, on the same page as Mi.

Tonks flipped the page displaying the older pair and held it up as she studied the younger.

“I like it,” she complimented. “How did you come up with it?”

“Well, it was something that I saw back at the MNP,” he lifted a shoulder. “One of the other Agents has three nieces and she brought them in for a visit. The youngest had her hair in pigtails, the middle one had a pair of braids and the oldest had her hair mostly down with two strands tied in the back. I got the dresses from various ideas brought in from watching people around Liberty Square. Uh, our Diagon Alley.”

“I think they would look beautiful,” Tonks sighed dreamily.

“I know.”

He saw one of the Weasley adults trip over something and a spoon dropped to the floor with a clang. Tony glanced under the table and found the spoon near him, so he ducked down to get it. Straightening up, he handed the spoon over and waved before turning back to Tonks –

who was staring wide-eyed at something over his shoulder with empty hands still in position and white hair.

Knowing almost _exactly_ who was standing behind him, he tipped his head back until it hit fabric and his eyes connected with Fleur’s. Desperately trying to remember if drawing one’s beloved younger sister by a (technically) older male stranger was illegal in France, he put on his best smile.

“Fleur! Fancy meeting you here. Wonderful weather we’re having, isn’t it? You’re looking gorgeous this morning, Bill’s a lucky man. I bet your sister’ll be just as much of a heartbreaker when she grows up and – why are you looking at me like that?”

* **

Hermione smiled brightly as she dropped into the seat across from Palmer. “Everything’s going according to plan.”

“Yeah, you were all working hard,” he nodded. “I came by about an hour ago.”

It was going to be _brilliant_.

Once Harry and Hermione got over most of the shock that came with realizing just what kind of chaos they’d married into, they threw themselves into their Wedding Project with as much enthusiasm as the kids did.

Gabby knew more about this particular part and how to pull it off, so she took most of the responsibility and the French kids were excited about their roles.

Even the Brits were enjoying things, spurred on by the promise of actually getting to do things besides trying to sit still.

“I’m glad Tony’s got us doing something productive,” she started on her sandwich. “Have you seen him? He was supposed to come out after breakfast, but he never did.”

“You know,” Palmer frowned at her, “I’ve been wondering the same thing. Several of Fleur’s family members have asked after her, as well. Evidently, she’s supposed to make this drink for the reception as her traditions dictate.”

That’s right, tomorrow night was when the reception took place. Hermione remembered the hair ribbons that Harry had. AJ Johnson – a soon to be Second Year Hufflepuff – had started this odd little ritual of using those ribbons to bind friends together – or ‘allies’ – and they did something like that with Palmer in Fifth Year. Tony wanted them to do the same with Deeks since the blond didn’t have a lot of good magical friends. Harry told them about how he had met Deeks and Ron wholeheartedly agreed. It had been sweet, how he’d taken charge of the American. Hermione had sometimes wondered if her mothering Harry was something of a point of contention with their friend. She could admit that she was kind of overprotective of a sort, but she always thought that Ron hadn’t been interested in taking care of their friend. Now that Ron had Deeks to actively watch over – since Tony seemed to respond better to all of them instead of just one on one -, he seemed more content.

She finished her lunch making small talk with Palmer when yet another visitor stumbled into the kitchen from the living room fireplace.

“Are you here for the wedding?” Mrs. Weasley met her at the door.

“Like, kind of. Is Mi Granger here? I need her body. Oh, and Ginny and Gabby, too, please.”

Palmer glanced over to see Hermione’s face the color of Ron’s hair. “Do you know her?”

“I don’t… think so…”

“May I ask who you are?” Mrs. Weasley puffed up, eyes narrowing at the blonde.

“Hey,” Ginny materialized next to Hermione. “Aren’t you the owner of Spark of Light? In America? I read your article last Christmas in one of Lavender’s magazines.”

“Yup! Sparky’s the name, clothes are my game. Well, bridesmaid clothes in this case.”

“Fleur found a dress?” one of the Delacour group sighed in relief. “Good. I was afraid she would ‘ave to wear one of my Aunt’s dresses. Zey are ‘orrible.”

Hermione was being herded up the stairs before she knew it, Ginny and Gabby trailing her.

They were brought to Ginny’s bedroom where three curtains had been set up and Ginny was directed to a red one, Gabby to the white and Hermione to the blue.

She had just enough time to remember that magic changed things – making spaces look small on the outside and big on the inside – when a floating measuring tape started tugging on her sleeve.

“Right, sorry,” she started disrobing and smiled when she saw her clothing start folding themselves up. “Where should I stand?”

Sparky slipped in halfway through the measuring process. “Like, hi. Tony told me a little about you.”

“So, you _are_ that Sparky?” Hermione smiled uneasily, not very comfortable with others seeing her body, especially since she didn’t really know Sparky.

“The one and only,” she watched her with the intensity that Hermione had always associated with Sherlock.

The brunette bit her lip as the blonde slowly circled her and they eventually ended up staring at each other.

“So, what are your intentions toward Tony?”

“… I’m sorry?” she tried hard to not let the other know about her suddenly racing heart. Tony’s friend couldn’t know about the bond, right?

“Come on,” she scoffed, lifting a shoulder. “Three famous kids like Harry Potter and his two best friends?” hazel eyes narrowed. “Makes you wonder what their endgame is, befriending an Agent who has so little confidence in himself.”

Hermione’s brown eyes narrowed right back. “Just what are you implying? That he’s some sort of scapegoat plaything? Well, he’s _not_. Tony’s confidence may be low, yes, but we are trying very hard to help him regain that. He’s a brave man that my friends and I are honored to call friend. He’s been through so much already – with Jeanne and Gibbs taking off to Mexico – and we would be ashamed of ourselves if we took advantage of him like that. There is no endgame involved in anything, I’ll have you know, because we don’t let anyone take the fall for mistakes that we are more than capable of being responsible for. We would never use him as a means to an end. We won’t.”

She breathed to calm herself when Sparky said, “I’m sorry for dragging your character through the mud, then. Well, that leaves Tony with an endgame.”

“What the bloody _hell_ kind of friend are you?” Hermione stared incredulously, not giving a second thought to the words coming from her mouth. Her vision went a bit scarlet at the edges as she jumped to the Italian’s defense. “Tony doesn’t need fame to do his job. He may hate it sometimes, but he does it anyway because it keeps others safe. He does his job without wanting more because he doesn’t want to end up stuck behind a desk when he could go out and actually _do_ something. He wants to keep everyone as safe as he can – and yes, Harry being famous might have occurred at times, but only because Harry _is_ famous and could be a target. Don’t you _dare_ accuse him of using people for his own gain and call yourself his friend! If all his friends are like you and the team he’s supposed to trust, then I’m more determined to be a better one than all of you put together!”

Sparky’s wide eyes registered through her haze and she gave a thought to quailing under the realization that she’d just scolded someone older than her, but she tilted her chin up and met the other’s gaze like the Gryffindor she was – one who defended a friend who’d been insulted behind his back.

They stared at each other for a few moments in silence.

“You really feel like that?” Sparky quietly asked, expression solemn.

“Yes, I do,” she confirmed.

“And the boys?”

“And the boys.”

Sparky nodded thoughtfully enough that Hermione began to wonder if she’d just made even more trouble for Tony. Before she started worrying, the blonde let out a squeal and lunged forward to drag the startled brunette into a rib-crushing hug. “You passed, you passed! That was _wonderful_!”

“…”

That was a test?

The blonde’s wavy hair was held back by a headband and Hermione could smell the older Witch’s subtle perfume as she was squeezed again.

“I’m so thankful that you’re all friends with Tony,” Sparky whispered just loud enough for the brunette to hear. “He can never have enough, right?” she hummed happily and they stayed like that until Hermione shifted slightly.

“Um, Ms. Sparky? Can I, um, get dressed?”

The blonde went rigid. “Is that what time it is? Good Merlin, how time flies,” she turned her eyes up and whirled around. “Well, it was a pleasure, Mi. Hope to see you again soon,” she waved over her shoulder as she left the curtain.

Hermione breathed deeply, rubbing her forehead. ‘Well, that was a bit different.’ Sparky was testing her integrity toward Tony? She never had to go through one of those before. It certainly brought a certain piece of mind that Tony had good friends who watched his back. In their own way.

“Interesting.”

She leaped forward with a bitten off shriek at the voice behind her. Whirling around, she spotted Tony in the corner, eyes distant and arms crossed over his chest. “I didn’t think she could be intimidating.”

“Tony! What are you doing in here?” she demanded to know, still shook up.

“Get dressed,” he told her absently. “I’ll see you in a bit.”

By the time she got herself back together, Sparky had gotten everything she needed, having turned the other pair over to Tony.

“Like, thanks, girls,” the blonde chirped. The measuring tapes snuck into her pockets as she waved the curtains down. “Tony, I’ll have them ready by tomorrow night.”

“Thanks, Sparky,” he beamed. “I knew I could count on you.”

“Course! This is me you’re talking to.”

“Are we done?” Ginny broke in. “Mum’s probably wondering where we are by now.”

“Nah, she’s busy with Fleur,” Tony waved a hand. “Evidently, Fleur has to make this drink for the reception.”

“Palmer said something about that,” Hermione mused.

“Yeah. Evidently, everyone seventeen and up are getting this pale blue drink. Under, a pale red juice. I don’t think there’s anything against tasting it, though.”

“ _Non_ ,” Gabby shook her head, looking thoughtful. “You and ‘Arry may taste some, but you cannot drink it all. Ze adults are supposed to drink almost _trois_ … non, three?... cups. Eet iz a tradition for good luck in ze marriage. The juice is much like fruit, _mais_ the blue is different.”

“Caffeine, huh?” Sparky nodded.

“Non, sugar. Zere is much, but I am not old enough.”

“Okay, sugar. I can do that,” Tony nodded.

“Have a drink and think of me,” Sparky twined their arms together. “It’s probably good for, like, the kids to not be jumping off the walls, huh?”

“They’re already a handful,” Ginny told her.

“Are you…?” Sparky grinned at Tony’s nod. “Excellent.”

“What?” Gabby wanted to know, looking between them.

“Well,” Tony shrugged. “It’s very simple.”

“While the adults put you in a position of authority over the younger years,” Sparky added.

“Like we found ourselves in a number of times –”

“- you just need to remember one very important thing.

They both chorused: “ **Make them regret every moment of it**.”

It was almost eerie how they acted like Fred and George sometimes.

“You two must have been close back at your school,” Ginny told them. 

“Well, it was mostly him and Booker for all of First Year,” Sparky lifted a shoulder. “I came around about the middle of Second.”

“I don’t think I can wait to go back to school,” Ginny sighed. “ Besides finally getting away from Mum, I’ll be able to eat almost anything I want.”

While the youngest of the Weasley siblings had a big appetite, she was no match for her last older brother.

“We can even go to Honeyduke’s,” Hermione added.

“Isn’t their chocolates wonderful?” Sparky sighed dreamily.

“Well, the sugar Quills are a favorite,” Tony smiled. “Will that be something that Fleur – _sugar_?!” the smile suddenly dropped off his face as his eyes widened. He paled rapidly and tore down the stairs.

“What was that?” Sparky raised a brow.

The girls looked at each other before following Tony down to the living room where Deeks was.

“Tony came down in a hurry,” he told them.

“Do you know where he went?” Hermione looked around.

“Nope.”

Palmer, Harry and Ron met them a moment later.

“We found Fleur,” Palmer told Hermione. “She was apparently off somewhere with Tony.”

“Palmer,” they turned to see the said Witch gliding toward them with both a contented look on her face and a cup in her hands. Hermione wondered if the content look was a result of finally finding a dress. “Could you taste zis? I cannot decide what iz missing.”

“Oh, sure,” he reached out for it – only for Tony to suddenly appear next to him and take it out of his hand.

“Thanks, Palmer,” he grinned. “Kind of parched. Well, down the hatch,” he sang, tipping it into his mouth and draining the whole thing in a few seconds. “Very good,” he handed the empty cup back to Fleur, “missing cinnamon. Palmer, go find Mac and tell her to meet me up in Ron’s room, yeah? Deeks, you go up, too. Trio, I think the kids have been kept waiting long enough. Sparky, have a good trip home and I’ll see you tomorrow.” Tony nodded to himself before making to leave out the front door.

“And where are you off to, then?” Ron frowned after him.

Tony breathed deeply. “… throw up.”

** ** *

Harry wondered what Tony, Deeks, Mac and Palmer were talking about when they didn’t show up an hour later, but he wasn’t curious enough to ask.

“It’s probably an American thing,” Hermione told them. “I thought I heard [something about sugar](http://archiveofourown.org/works/6679066/chapters/15275932), though.”

They were letting Gabby put the kids through their paces with Ginny bullying her younger cousins into joining, while they stood nearby.

Harry leaned against the tree behind him. “We have to do the ribbon thing tonight.”

“We know,” Ron nodded. “We don’t have to tell them about the bond, right?”

“Not until we really need to,” Hermione assured. “If ever.”

Harry nodded thoughtfully. “We have Palmer, AJ and the both of you under the ribbon. Well, I don’t know what we’re going to tell Palmer if we do it again. I don’t mind Mac and Deeks coming into the group.”

They didn’t either.

The Americans came back a few minutes later.

“What was that about?” Ron wanted to know.

“Nothing you can do about it,” Tony shrugged. “But I suspect it will come out later.”

Harry glanced at the other two, who both shrugged as well, before looking him over. “Well, I guess it’s not dangerous. You’re all still alive.”

“Probably not for long,” Deeks deadpanned. “Tony’s got some kind of meeting with the Headmaster tomorrow night. Merlin only knows what that’s going to entail.”

They were all called when Ginny and Gabby were done with their part and the next few hours were spent perfecting their Project.

They had to cut it short when half the French and a few British kids had to honor playdates, so they all decided to call it a day before dinner.

The group was nearing the Burrow with what was left of the kids when Harry spied a familiar quartet waving at them.

“Hey,” he grinned. “It’s AJ and the triplets!”

“Hey!” Deeks waved back at the girls. “Clones and brown-haired child that I’ve never seen before in my life.”

“Deeks, be nice,” Hermione smiled as the four girls ran to meet them. The other kids headed for their parents to hang out with them for a few hours. Tony had made them all pinky promise to not breathe a word about what they had in store for the wedding.

“How are you?” Harry grabbed AJ Johnson when the Hufflepuff pounced on him.

“It’s really exciting,” she told him. “I’ve never been to any kind of wedding.”

“Me, either,” Harry nodded.

“We did,” Autumn Benson told him. Her sisters, Wynter and Summer, agreed.

Even with Harry’s sharp eyes, he couldn’t tell one apart from the other two. Luckily, Autumn was in Gryffindor, Wynter in Ravenclaw and Summer in Hufflepuff, so there was a way to tell them apart.

“I feel sorry for your parents,” Deeks told them before wincing at how it might have sounded.

“Well,” one shrugged. “We have our House colors. It’s easier now.”

“I wouldn’t be too sure,” Tony huffed a laugh. “You can just switch clothes to make everyone believe you’re in the right House. Not difficult.”

Harry suddenly looked carefully at the triplets, who looked back, and wondered if they were living as each other half the time at school. Tony sounded like he caught them out while wandering the school as his Animagus form.

AJ went on to greet the others as the triplets shadowed her.

“Do you have your stuff?” Palmer smiled slightly at them.

“Yeah,” the triplet in pink nodded. “We just need to make them bigger.”

“Let’s head over to the tent, then,” Tony told them. “We can get you four settled before dinner.”

The girls were delighted when they found sleeping bags waiting for them and the sisters immediately dragged theirs closer together.

“Can I sleep by you, Harry?” AJ wanted to know.

Since Hermione had told him, Tony and Ron about the brunette’s adopting Harry, he had kind of worried about how to treat her since he’d never had a sibling. It had been something he would find himself thinking about from time to time, feeling kind of sad that he never had the chance to experience something that Ron and Ginny – and Gabby – took for granted. Tony obviously had brothers, Sherlock and Eames, but Harry wasn’t sure about Eames since he’d never met the man outside of his cat form and he was almost certain that Tony had never actually grown up with them.

“I don’t mind,” Ron shrugged. Tony just made some space for her between him and Hermione.

“Thanks, Professor,” she beamed, dumping her things there.

“ _Tony’s_ teaching?!” the redhead choked. “Why didn’t I know about this – ”

“Calm down, I’m not your Professor,” he frowned. “AJ, you said that before, too. Has someone been spreading rumors again?”

The Trio, Palmer and Mac snickered as they remembered one instance during Tony’s Hogwarts convalescence that the students explained when one of them was apparently bored.

“But it _would_ be nice if we knew one Defense professor wasn’t out to get us,” Ron pointed out.

“It would,” Harry agreed, kind of disappointed.

“Psh,” Deeks waved a hand. “I think I would be a better teacher than Tony would.”

“I think I like Tony better,” Hermione told him. “No offense.”

“Besides, which, Mr. Deeks, I would prefer you to not disappear for a year when there is still teambuilding to be done.”

Deeks did _not_ squeak as he almost tripped over the triplet in pale green as he tried moving away from the voice coming from behind him.

“Hey, Hetty,” Tony raised a hand as Harry turned to see a small red haired woman smiling up at them.

“Agent DiNozzo. And you must be Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley and Ms. Granger.”

“Er, yes,” Hermione glanced at Tony.

“Everyone, this is Hetty Lange,” the Italian told them. “She’s technically Deeks’ NCIS boss.”

“Yes. I was actually looking for you, Tony,” she told him.

“Oh, right,” he nodded. “Almost forgot about that. Uh, why don’t you guys introduce the quartet around? I’ll be somewhere nearby.”

“Which means we disappear,” Deeks gladly made for the exit.

“Abby told me about you,” Palmer told Hetty.

“All good things, I imagine,” she peered at him from above her glasses with a knowing smile.

Tony stayed with Hetty as the others went back out. 

“So, what are they talking about, do you think?” Harry wondered.

“The less we know, the better,” Deeks assured.

Harry, Deeks, Ron, Hermione, AJ, Palmer, Mac, Neville, Gabby and Ginny were called back an hour before dinner.

Once everyone had settled – and Deeks reassured that Hetty had left for locations unknown (“No, she didn’t. Eric told us that she was having a meeting at the McDonald’s near her place with her book club.”) -, Tony surveyed them all as he stood in the center.

“Some of us know why we’re all here tonight,” he began. “We are friends, each one of us, and as such, myself and the Trio would ask that you do something for us. There are ribbons, as you might know, on the table,” which AJ had been delighted to see upon entering, “and there’s a little something we use them for. AJ, since you were the one to start, why don’t you explain?”

Harry watched as she told them about the ribbons signifying alliances and shook his head at himself. It hadn’t been that long ago that he hadn’t really understood it, either – still didn’t -, but he did like the idea of something tying them all together.

When she was done, AJ nodded. “So, that’s what we are asking. For you to be allies to ourselves and each other. We are all friends and we need some kind of reminder of that.”

“I’m game,” Deeks volunteered.

“What could it hurt?” Mac shrugged.

One by one, they all agreed and Harry thought AJ would burst with happiness as ribbons were tied around wrists (boys) and locks of hair (girls).

“Being allies means,” Tony continued, “we don’t turn each other over no matter what.” Harry looked around, missing the Italian’s glance at Gabby who caught it and looked thoughtful, and grinned as he caught Neville smiling at the ribbon adorning his wrist.

“We’ll need those back,” Ron told them all. “For others pledging allegiance to Harry.”

“That’s not what this is supposed to mean,” Hermione sighed in exasperation. “It’s about friendship, not taking sides.”

“That’s what I got from it.”

“That’s not what you told me,” Palmer frowned.

“We updated things,” Tony told him. “We can do that, it’s our ribbons.”

The ribbons were gathered and put away in Hermione’s corner before dinner was ready.

“But speaking of friends, Tony,” Harry spoke up when dinner started later outside to accommodate everyone, “I think I would like to meet all of yours.”

“Yeah, Tony,” Ron nodded. “You met ours.”

“But you met the ghost twins,” Palmer pointed out. “And Fred and Susie, and Peter and Sally and Sherlock. You probably didn’t meet Eames, though…”

“Or Denver,” Tony suddenly looked kind of sad. “I haven’t heard from them in years. Don’t know if they’re even still alive.”

“You don’t?” Hermione straightened. “Maybe we could help.”

“Yeah,” Ron snorted. “After trying to find Adrienne Lewis to return her diary? If she wasn’t dead last year, she probably is now. And _that’s_ assuming she lived to be an adult.”

Harry hated to admit it, but he had to agree. They weren’t any closer to finding the young – well, when she wrote in her diary – Muggle whose diary Harry accidently picked up last year.

“Oh, I have faith you’ll figure it out,” Tony sipped his water. “You did so much last year.”

“Half of it was just luck,” Hermione told him.

“The luck of investigators,” he sagely pointed out.

Mac chuckled. “Drop it, Trio. Tony won’t.”

Harry was glad that Tony had such a high regard for them, but he worried that they wouldn’t be able to live up to it.

AJ, who seemed stuck to his side, smiled slightly. “I think you’ll find who you’re looking for,” she told him. “One way or another.”

“Is it going to be _this_ year?” Ron had to ask, somewhat teasingly.

“Or… maybe she’s found you,” she mused. She tipped her head to the side before shrugging and turning to the triplets, leaving Tony and the Trio staring at her.

Ron shook his head. “I still don’t know what to make of that one.”

* **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Curious about what the Americans were up to after Sparky showed up? Check out 'Sweet Danger' to satisfy any questions you have.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys, I'm sorry, I usually don't like 'begging for reviews' and I know that people are reading this and enjoying it, but if you can find a moment to drop a comment, I would appreciate it. The Muse isn't exactly running on full right now, so encouragement is helpful. And I'm also writing in the part of this story that I really don't want to write and will probably end up crying my eyes out afterwards.
> 
> For reasons that will definitely make sense later, Sherlock Season/Series Three and NCIS Season/Series 13 never happened. And I know that Ellie Bishop is a good character - assuming, since I stopped really watching after Ziva -, but she doesn't exist in this universe. 
> 
> Ziva doesn't leave the team in headcanon and a lot of things leading up to her departure doesn't happen. I need to have Ziva on the team for this entire thing to work, okay? 
> 
> This is why I love fanfic. Nothing ever happens that I don't want it to and I'm sure you won't mind.

The morning of the reception dawned bright and early.

Deeks smiled as he jogged around the house perimeter for his morning run. True, he hadn’t been doing much of it for the past week, but it felt good to work off his energy.

After last night’s little ribbon thing, he was actually feeling kind of good knowing that people had his back.

Tony and the kids seemed to believe it – especially that Johnson kid -, so he felt like he was flying with the realization that he had more Magical friends. Lyn was going to be so happy about that, after constantly trying to push him into getting more friends.

He snickered as he imagined the look on her face when she found out that not only did he do so, Harry Potter was one of them!

Speaking of the others, he left the tent when Palmer and one of the triplets were just getting up. Tony was dead to the world, at least he was an hour ago, and Deeks thought he needed more sleep, so he made extra sure to be quiet.

Deeks was excited for the reception taking place for all the available guests in front of the back door – where the after wedding would be -, between the Burrow and the orchard. The field was a quarter full of tents, but everyone knew that people shared tents that were big enough to live in anyway, so no one was bothered by it.

The guests that would be coming tomorrow would only be there for the wedding and Deeks heard that most of the guests would be gone the next day. Then it would be the Americans, the Trio and a handful of others who would stay for Harry’s birthday.

It was a good thing so many were clearing out – nice as most of them were. Deeks couldn’t help wondering if it was his imagination that he felt like he was constantly being watched (especially by what appeared to be the same group of people) or his memories and experiences of the past making him think that.

It couldn’t all be in his head, though. Ron scowled just the other day when he caught sight of one of the blond’s stalkers nearby.

So really, either way, Deeks was just glad to see a majority of them go.

The detective’s run took him around the tent area, the Burrow and a few minutes down the dirt path before turning back around to go around the other side of the Burrow to circle the orchard.

He was just running that last part in preparation to head back to the tent for a shower before breakfast when one of the triplets chased him down.

“Mr. Deeks! Mr. Deeks! Did you know about the swimming hole?” she skid to a stop before him.

“Oh, one of the others must have told you,” he nodded, regulating his breathing as he stretched. “Nice, isn’t it? You might be able to go swimming if you want. I hear it’s going to be nice before the reception.”

She stared at him. “So… it’s normal?”

“Kid, I’m not one hundred percent certain about which one you are, but have you never seen a swimming hole before?”

“I didn’t mean _that_ ,” she scowled. “I meant the apples.”

“Those are natural, too.”

She sighed. “I _meant_ the apples _in_ the swimming hole.”

“There’s not any apples in the swimming hole,” Deeks told her. “We picked them all up in the orchard.” Well, Tony used his magic to help, but no one needed to know that.

“So,” she looked back from where she came. “You _don’t_ know how they got in there?”

“Huh?”

“You better see for yourself,” she shrugged.

Deeks shook his head as he trotted after her. Really. Brits made no sense to him. For all he knew, ‘apples in the swimming hole’ meant something entirely different than what he assumed it to mean.

That doubt immediately flew from his head once he actually got to the edge of the orchard and he stopped to stare at the sight in front of him.

Just like One Benson had told him, there were apples in the swimming hole.

Freaking _apples_.

Big ones, little ones, some even misshapen, bobbing on the surface as they completely filled the swimming spot from one end of it to the other.

“Holy…”

“Yeah,” she nodded beside him. “Me and some of the others were out here rehearsing, when one of the French kids wandered this way.”

Deeks looked across the apple-filled water to see a bunch of kids watching. Some adults were there, too, with even more coming as word spread.

“By the look on your face,” One Benson looked up at him, “this isn’t good.”

“But I don’t understand,” he shook his head, walking around the water. “We all put them in the baskets by the house. Mrs. Weasley even put them somewhere because she said she was dividing them up between her and a few other families…”

The kid followed him as he walked along, mumbling to himself as he studied the floating apples.

Maybe it was something that someone did? But there were a handful of kids that could have done this, including Ron, though Deeks couldn’t figure out a motive.

To make trouble?

To do that, one would have had to know where Mrs. Weasley had hid the apples…

Unless _she_ did it…

He huffed at himself in exasperation as he and One joined the crowd. He was just thinking himself in circles.

Two Benson went to her sister and Three Benson was somewhere not in sight.

Ginny struggled through the growing crowd to get to Deeks.

“Bloody hell,” she gasped, catching sight of the apples. “What happened?”

“I don’t know,” he shrugged. “I just found out about it.”

“Mum wants today and tomorrow to go just perfect,” she looked up at him.

“Yeah, I got that,” he winced.

When the Weasley matriarch wasn’t glaring suspiciously at certain members of the Deeks Stalker Club – which may or may not exist – and Tony in particular for some reason, she was running in and out of the house making sure everything was going to be _perfect_ for her baby.

He would have felt bad for what they were going to do, if she hadn’t been using Gabby as a spy.

“She’s going to _freak_ ,” Ginny rubbed her mouth.

Two tugged on his sleeve. “Um, Mr. Deeks? Someone better come up with something quick. Mrs. Weasley looks ready to hurt someone.”

The group of four turned to see Mrs. Weasley, Three Benson, Fleur, Bill and one of the French kids heading toward them and Mrs. Weasley looked _angry_.

Deeks gulped as they took in the sight before Mrs. Weasley turned to her youngest child.

“Ginevra Weasley, _what_ is the meaning of this?” she demanded.

“I don’t know, Mum,” she raised her palms. “Deeks was here before I was.”

The blond stiffened as flashing brown eyes turned on him. Having never been good at keeping his cool when faced with angry Magic folk – thanks to his past -, he blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

* **

Tony stretched in the sitting room as Mac finally got up.

Palmer had gone to the Burrow for coffee and hadn’t yet returned, so Ginny had gone after him. Gabby was hanging out with her parents across the field in their tent – her mother having decided that the Burrow wasn’t quite big enough, so Tony had figured -, Deeks was on his morning run and should be coming back soon, AJ and the Trio were hanging out in the sitting room with the Italian and the triplets had gone off with some of the kids for rehearsal.

“Sorry, Mac,” Hermione told her. “We’re waiting for Palmer to get back with the coffee.”

The Marine mumbled something before flopping down on one of the couches in a heap.

“She’s still out of it,” Tony chuckled at her. Oh, he had a few stories about pre-coffee Mac that he’d collected over the years, but “Fred” Stevens probably had the juiciest – and almost _hysterical_ – story about it concerning some of the paper flyers at the MNP, glue and the Robbery unit.

Even Tony’s MNP supervisor, Doug Donners, was known to chuckle at the memory on occasion.

“I never thought coffee was so important,” AJ mused.

“Well, it’s the caffeine inside the coffee,” Tony corrected.

“I’ll take your word for it, Professor.”

“Cut that out! I plan to be working myself into the ground while you guys are having it easy at schoo – ”

“Tony!” Deeks burst into the sitting room with a panicked look on his face. “Oh, good Merlin, I _swear_ I didn’t mean to! It’s just I didn’t want to be attacked and she was so _mad_ and I didn’t know what else to say, so I said the first thing that came to mind and that happened to be _you_ –”

“Calm down, mate,” Ron stood. “What – ”

“Agent DiNozzo!”

The group – including the now alert Marine – turned to see Mrs. Weasley stomp into the room.

Deeks was right. She _was_ mad.

“How dare you – ”

“Mum,” Bill tumbled in after her. “Now hold on – ”

“You come here planning to sabotage my family’s wedding – ”

“Mum!” Ron came to stand next to Tony. “He did not!”

“Quiet, Ronald. This is none of your concern,” she stayed focused on Tony.

“It is when one of my friends is being accused of sabotaging something he’s not!”

“I always knew you were trouble,” his mother talked above him, her other son trying to calm the situation. “Why the Headmaster allowed you into our lives, I will never understand, but you are more trouble than we need!”

“Mrs. Weasley,” Harry and Hermione stood with their two friends, AJ not a step behind.

“Mum,” Bill hissed.

“The children don’t need you and the rest of us certainly don’t! Not a troublemaker who insists on being an Agent of America. Mark my words, I _will_ be telling Albus about this and then we shall see how welcome you are around any member of this family.”

“ _Mother_ ,” Bill finally had enough. He actually liked Tony, because his two youngest siblings just adored him and Harry and Hermione appeared just as enamored. Tonks and Sirius just loved having him around and Remus just followed their example. Tony even saved Harry and Ron, and Hermione by default. Bill was going to spend the rest of his life paying the other man back for that.

Bill stepped directly between them, forcing his mother to look at him.

“Tony is a guest,” he scowled. “He is a guest at _my_ wedding and Ron invited him. I trust Ron and his friends. I even went to Tony’s office at the MNP to look into it and I was almost tossed out a window for insinuating that Tony’s not trustworthy! By Agent Donners, no less! He asked me if I really thought he was stupid enough to let Tony near someone like Harry and his friends if he didn’t think Tony couldn’t be trusted. He even let me look through some of Tony’s magical and Muggle reports and I couldn’t be happier to have him bonding with my kid brother. Headmaster Dumbledore knows about that and probably things we don’t know, but I refuse to believe that he hadn’t thought long and hard before introducing Tony to our lives. In any case,” he breathed to calm himself. “If I remember, _you_ were the one to take care of those things in the first place. There is a load of kids running around who probably wanted to do the Muggle game of bobbing for apples! Tony has nothing to do with this and I know because he’s always sketching in that book and always here in this tent besides. They all went to sleep early last night, so I don’t know what you’re expecting Tony to confess to.”

Mrs. Weasley was locked in a stare down with Bill for long moments, before she visibly backed down.

Tony, having no idea what’s going on at this point, just followed one of the top five unwritten rules that all undercover Agents and cops followed: If you have no idea what is going on around you, act the opposite and pray the others bought it.

“Okay,” Tony put a hand on Bill’s shoulder. “I think we all need to calm down and breathe. For the record, I did think that we needed to have some sort of ice breaker for both families to start to meld together into one, but I think the wards messed with the timing of the spell because I wasn’t ready to reveal anything. You really should get those looked at, by the way.”

“See?” Bill breathed deeply. “Tony wasn’t sabotaging anything; he was just trying to help things go smoothly. I don’t know about you, Mum, but I’m interested in hearing about this ice breaker.”

“Yeah,” Deeks finally piped up, helping Tony after putting him in that position in the first place. “Something about a contest or something, didn’t you say? About who collected the most apples?”

“Yes,” he smiled at him. “Yes, that’s exactly what I was thinking.”

“A contest?” Fleur had come in before Bill began talking. “I would like to take part in zis contest.”

“I just hope you can swim,” Tony told her, putting the pieces together. “And yeah, whoever wants to is more than welcome to. Let’s get breakfast before we do anything else, though. Some of us still need waking up.”

Bill and Fleur herded Mrs. Weasley out as Palmer and Ginny returned with the promised coffee.

“There’s apples floating in the swimming hole,” Ginny told the others.

“Are you alright, Tony?” Hermione softly touched his arm.

“Don’t listen to her, Tony,” Ron told him fiercely as Harry hugged the oldest of the four. “We need you and you’re just as much trouble as the Marauders.”

“I thought that was bad,” Tony quipped, shaking slightly as the adrenaline faded. He tried smiling at the others, but he didn’t think it was as good as he thought it was since Mi hugged his other side.

“Not to us,” she told him. “You’re the good kind of trouble.”

“How could she have said those things?” Mac wondered, shocked. “Tony’s a good man, despite some of his flaws.”

“I apologized for that,” Tony scowled. She was probably still going to tease him about the case that brought them into each other’s path when both were dead and buried.

“I know you did,” she smiled.

“How did you do it, though?” Harry wanted to know. “The apples, I mean.”

“Well, when I figure it out, you’ll be the next to know.”

“You mean you took credit for someone else?” Ginny balked.

“We did it once before at school. It was actually kind of fun. But it’s as I told your mom. One of the kids may not have realized anything had happened. That’s what accidental magic is, and besides, we probably would have been forced to clean it all up, anyway. This game idea is more fun.”

“Well, if you just found out,” Palmer pointed out, “you better start thinking about what we’re going to do.”

“I know. Well, I guess we better get going. I want to have a look at the damage before I do anything else.”

** *

Harry wasn’t sure what Tony had up his sleeve, but they were all made to wait before heading down to the water after breakfast.

Ginny and Ron spent breakfast making sure their mother was as far from Tony as possible, and Fleur helped by jumping up to dump more food on his plate and Tony had to make her stop putting so much sugar and milk in his tea.

But, eventually, everyone survived breakfast and were now waiting for Tony’s little game to begin.

“What do you think we’re going to do?” Ravenclaw Benson wanted to know. Deeks made them wear one of their respective House colors because he couldn’t tell otherwise.

“I don’t know,” Ginny told her, “but it’s bound to be good.”

The Trio, on the other hand, weren’t entirely sure what Tony could come up with in such a short amount of time.

“Do you think he needs help?” Hermione fretted.

“He would have said something,” Ron pointed out. “He looked excited when he left.”

That had been good to see. The Italian had all but bounced out of the area.

Palmer caught their worried looks. “I wouldn’t worry about it,” he chuckled. “Tony’s good at coming up with ideas on the fly. Why, I remember last year on Valentine’s Day. There had been a confetti and glitter mishap and we were all trying to contain the mess. Tony wasn’t there five minutes before he came up with the best method I’ve ever seen. If you ask Fred _really_ nicely, he’ll be more than happy to demonstrate.”

Mac snorted on his other side. “Maybe when he’s drunk enough. He hates glitter, but, you know, I don’t think we ever found out why he’s so against it.”

Tony eventually showed up with a stack full of papers.

“Alright, everyone, gather ‘round,” he invited. “This,” he lifted the stack, “is very necessary for this to work. For those who want to participate, please move over to my left and those who do not may stay seated.” After everyone had shuffled places – and Harry was very surprised to see just how many wanted to be part of it -, Tony nodded to himself. “For the young ones, I have a special activity for you, so please come over here and stand in front of me. Now. Spectators – on my right -, you will need these papers to participate. When you get to the swimming hole, you will understand what I mean. Once you have received your slip of paper, please proceed to the area in question. Everyone else, follow me.”

The kids trailed after him first before everyone else followed them.

“This sounds promising,” Mac told them as Tony led them deep into the orchard.

A few moments later, Tony had the kids back in front of him while the older ones stood behind them.

“Now, we have a bunch of apples to retrieve, so I’ve decided to put you all to work. Kids, we will start with you. You will need to pick two adults to be on your team, okay? Everyone… let’s say… thirteen and up, stand in a line and I’ll send one child at a time over to you. After you have a team of three, please line up at the tree with a yellow ribbon.”

Harry looked over to spot a yellow ribbon on a tree some distance away.

“You will get further instructions when everyone has been chosen.”

Harry and Ron were picked by Gabby, as AJ picked Ginny and Hermione. The selection process went by quickly and soon, all were lined up at the tree where Tony waited.

“Good, you have your teams,” he nodded. “Alright, now, we are going to walk toward the swimming hole where you will get your next instructions.”

“I’m not sure I’m up for this,” Palmer voiced from behind Hermione, where his hand was clasped by a French girl who latched on when they started walking.

“I think it’s too late to back out now,” Ginny told him.

Harry was sure she was right.

Tony stopped them within sight of the floating apples, but they couldn’t see where they would usually come in from because of a curtain that had been put up to block their sight.

“There are three ribbons tied onto three trees. Pick one.”

Mac and Palmer had been picked by a Weasley cousin and they followed him to the middle one, as Deeks and Neville were led to the end, AJ led the girls to the first and Harry was led to the middle behind Mac and Palmer.

“Everyone in the front of the line should be seeing a pile of small buckets attached to their handles. Teams, the ribbon you have stopped in front of is your team color. That means that everyone in your line is your team. Now,” Tony stood in front of the three lines. “Each person is going to get your bucket and you will proceed toward the line of your color. The goal here is to get the most apples, not race to the finish. There will be no cheating or you will restart with an empty bucket. Cheating consists of using your hands and using magic to coax the apples into the buckets. Teams in front of the lines, you will begin.”

"I guess we're the suckers who volunteered for this,"Deeks joined his teammates in the water. “Alright, team!” he waved to the others on shore. “To the finish line!” He took one step and disappeared under the apples.

“Huh. I guess there _was_ a deep spot,” Tony deadpanned. “Oops.”

The blond shot out of the water. “Okay. That was revenge for not telling you about what happened earlier, isn’t it?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about. You have ten minutes to get to the other side, everyone! Go!”

The others cheered them on as the next teams entered the water.

Harry saw the lanes of colored ribbon matching the ones on the trees and noted that it was curtained off so that no one strayed past a certain point further out. The lanes ran between the two curtains and curved around toward the other end where the dock was.

“You did all this in about twenty minutes?” he had to ask Tony.

“I was motivated,” he shrugged.

Ten minutes were up and Harry’s team of Ron and Gabby went next.

“This was a good idea,” Ron commented, moving his bucket around to get more apples.

“Yeah, but you have to admit it’s kind of disappointing.”

Ron had to agree.

They thought Tony had something more exciting up his sleeve, but maybe this was for the smaller kids…

When their ten minutes were up, Harry reckoned that they’d collected a lot of apples, but there were only six in the bucket when he looked. They exited the curtained area to a round of applause by the crowd of on-lookers seated in – honest to Merlin – _stands_.

“He did a lot more in twenty minutes than I thought,” Harry shook his head. The Italian constantly surprised him.

They were directed to their colored tub, where a sizable number of apples were already in place.

“Oh, we dump zem?” Gabby watched one of the others and copied his actions. Her eyes widened as a _stream_ of apples and water came pouring from her bucket.

“That’s just like the apples we picked up in the orchard,” Ron grinned as he dumped his.

By the time all the teams had gone through, Harry would have thought that they demolished half the apples – and they did make a dent in it, small as it was -, but the surface was still covered in apples.

“Hm,” Tony pressed his lips together, having come with the stragglers. “It’s turned out more difficult than I thought. Well, alright, we still have the adults to take care of.”

“You mean there’s more?” Deeks leaned his fists on his hips.

“Of course. What, you think that was it? You should know me by now.”

With a wave of a hand, the colored lanes and curtains were gone and in their place –

“What is _that_?” Ginny stared.

“Floating bumper cars,” Palmer mused. “With buckets.”

Whatever Palmer had just said, it certainly made sense to him.

Harry just saw little cars with buckets in the middle of their hoods. The next thing that drew his attention was the fact that the cars were all painted one of four colors.

“Now that all our teams have been assembled, let’s see who had the most,” Tony pointed his wand at the tubs and numbers appeared on the sides. “Hm, hm, let me see…” Everyone wanted to know.

Eventually, the numbers stopped rolling and stayed on one each.

“It was close,” Tony announced. “All those on Team Blue won first place.”

The winners cheered, much to the losers’ dismay.

“All those in Team Blue, please come get your medals.”

Deeks proudly wore his ‘gold’ medal depicting three apples in a basket.

“I don’t really win at anything,” Neville told them in wonder as they slapped him on the back.

“Good for you, mate,” Ron pumped his hand. The others chimed in with their own congratulations.

Tony wasn’t done.

“All those on Team Red, please come up to receive your silver medals.”

AJ, Ginny and Hermione showed them off. They had the same design as the ‘gold’ ones.

“And for Team Yellow, your bronze medals. Thanks for playing, everybody!”

“Just in time for lunch, too,” Mac commented as the audience made their way down.

“We all got medals,” Hufflepuff Benson admired her silver one. “I wonder what the next game is going to be.”

* **

Deeks nursed his tea as everyone waited for their stomachs to settle.

Tony had certainly turned this disaster around and the blond didn’t buy it that Tony dumped the apples in the water. He seemed the kind of person to take the heat for someone else.

“What was that paper you lot had, anyway?” Ron asked one of his cousins. He gave it to him. Deeks looked over his shoulder as he flattened it.

There were four columns of five names. Each of them had a number next to it.

“That’s for the adult game,” one of the other Weasley cousins – Lira, but a lot of people called her Lyric – told them. “I think that the audience gets to choose the order someone goes in.”

“Oh,” Ginny nodded.

“Then where are _our_ names?” Hermione frowned.

“Be patient, Mi,” Tony poked her. “You’ll get your chance. And Ron’s cousin was right in a way. I let five names appear for each of four teams. The audience rates who they would like to see going against each other, in a set of four at a time. For now, though, I thought I’d speed up the process by allowing eight to be out. As the apples dwindle, then we’ll bring out the four. That means each team has two players out on the water. Don’t worry, everyone will get a chance to go up against the others.”

“Sounds reasonable.”

But patience, Deeks found, was not at all easy to come by.

Not for this group.

Now that they scented competition, they were impatient to get going.

Deeks was certainly impatient, as well, though he kept as tight a lid as he was able. He never felt completely comfortable when surrounded by crowds of Magical strangers.

Lunch ended and not a moment too soon; half the participants were already out the door by the time Tony decided that he’d tortured them enough.

“Right now, I’m hoping no one’s too squeamish,” he confided in Deeks and Harry. “Being on any kind of water isn’t good for the fragile stomach.”

“Being in a Tomcat isn’t, either,” Mac sighed. “I would know.”

Palmer glanced back with a frown. “Tony, I thought we all agreed that I wasn’t sober when we went on that dinner thing with Abby.”

“I rest my case.”

Deeks liked watching the other three Americans interact with each other, as Palmer responded back.

There was an ease between them that he rarely saw. The Trio had it, too, especially with Tony. Though Deeks saw each of the three try mothering Tony in their own way, they were more equals than kids and adult. There weren’t many friendships that he’d seen with that kind of dynamic and Deeks found himself taking Tony’s cues.

Not like it was a hardship, because they really were good kids and –

“ _Monsieur_ Deeks,” he stiffened when the bride-to-be wrapped her arms around one of his. “’ow are you liking ze weekend so far?”

“Uh… okay…? It’s kind of exciting.”

“Mm. Eet is not very big, but I do not mind.”

“Well, sometimes small is good.”

She hummed and didn’t move away, even after they reached the lake.

He wasn’t sure what to do, exactly. Or why him.

Tony waited for everyone to gather before calling some ~~victims~~ volunteers forward. “Okay,” he rubbed his hands together. “So, the results are in for the first round. I know, I know, the reception’s tonight, so let’s get moving, huh? I have eight players out on the water for this round in the game. You will have five minutes to get as many apples in your bucket as you can. The rules for the last game apply here. No magic and no using your hands to get more into your bucket or you will start over with an empty one. So. My volunteers here,” he waved at two of the Weasley cousins and three of the Delacour contingent, “will demonstrate.”

Harry and the others watched as the each of the five got into a car and was given the same buckets from last time. They were floated out into the water and instructed to dip their buckets into the apple-infested water until the buckets could hold no more. Then, the smaller buckets were tapped to the rim of the bigger one on the hood of the car and the apples spilled out into it.

Harry didn’t think it looked hard to do, so he waited slightly impatiently as the volunteers were brought back. Tony then called out the chosen names for round one – Mac being one of them.

“Wish me luck,” she quipped with a grin, gamely sauntering over to a car and taking her bucket in hand.

As soon as all had a car, the game began.

** *


	17. Chapter 17

The competition was fierce.

Harry chuckled as a Delacour was penalized yet again for cheating as water and apples flew from the players out in the midst of it.

Not like any of them could tell what the score was right now because evidently not knowing the score as it stood made it that much more exciting. 

He did have to admit, though. As far as chores went, this way of picking apples up beat the other kind.

“Did we ever figure out how the apples got out from wherever Ron’s mum hid them?” Hermione asked from his left.

“Are you joking?” Ron snorted. “What Mum doesn’t want found, isn’t. I think she did it on purpose.”

“Why would your Mum want to do this?”

“So she can blame Tony for causing trouble,” Ron frowned darkly at the memory of this morning. Harry did, too, but he doubted it was as intentional as they claimed.

“Maybe Tony was right when he said someone may have wanted to try bobbing for apples,” Harry suggested.

“We can’t rule that out, either,” Hermione eventually conceded as yet another group of eight was sent out.

Mrs. Weasley had gone to get started on the dinner along with a few others and it seemed like – however badly the morning began – she was glad of the distractions. Harry didn’t want to think badly of her, but there was a niggling in the back of his mind that maybe Ron had a point in suspecting his mum to be making Tony the scapegoat. That didn’t, however, mean she did…

Deeks bounded back to them five minutes later.

“Check it out,” he grinned, gesturing back at the water. “Looks like we’re doing something about it, after all.”

Harry followed his hand and nodded. He hadn’t actually been paying much attention, but a majority of the apples had given way to clear water. Tony’s plan was working just as many of them thought it would.

The number of players had grown slightly, since Tony kept letting new players join when they asked for participation. The audience had split themselves up into four sections corresponding to the teams and cheered for their players. They still voted on who went up against who, which Harry had mixed feelings about.

He couldn’t help thinking that the reason he had yet to be called out was the fact that he was the famous Harry Potter. Ron, Hermione, Tony – even Palmer, who looked slightly ill afterwards – had been called already! He looked up and frowned when he spied Headmaster Albus Dumbledore cheerily munching on some popcorn and waving a small flag in support of the Red team.

Call Harry paranoid, but Dumbledore seemed to be putting Harry’s name off the list. I mean, yeah, it was supposed to be a harmless game, but who knows what the Order thought of this. They were ridiculously protective of him – which he understood and was grateful for, really -, but he just couldn’t stay in their bubble, especially since Tony and Peter and the Trio still had to figure out what to do concerning the marriage bond and the blood protection wards going out.

It sounded silly, but Harry couldn’t help wondering if Dumbledore knew somehow that they had a connection and was slightly cautious while in his presence of giving something away. He tried not to be, however, since Tony told him that would just make people suspicious that he had something to hide.

(‘That’s actually how I found out about one of the Naval Witches,’ Tony mused. ‘Although, it probably would’ve been nice if that had been the _only_ thing she was hiding…’)

Ron and Hermione were encouraged to also act like nothing was wrong.

(‘Ron’s not exactly the one I’m worried about…’ ‘And what, may I ask, is that supposed to mean?’ ‘Mi, he’s the Headmaster. You’re still trying to get around, you know, regular teachers. How should I know he won’t give you a look and you would fold like a house of cards?’)

In any case, Harry wasn’t going out any time soon and he told Ron and Hermione about it.

“You really shouldn’t jump to conclusions, though, Harry,” Hermione told him. “I’m sure Tony knows that you haven’t been out and he’ll do something about it.”

“What, though,” Ron frowned. “I mean, if Dumbledore doesn’t want Harry out there, then I don’t know what Tony can do about it.”

“What Tony can do about what?” they turned to see Palmer just walking up to them from where he’d been in the stands.

“We’re a bit concerned,” Hermione explained, “that Harry’s not been called out, yet.”

“Yeah,” Ron nodded. “Maybe because he’s the Boy Who Lived.”

Palmer frowned at that. “Well, that can’t be right,” he crossed his arms. “Even if Harry’s famous, this is supposed to be a game that anyone can play. It wouldn’t be right at all if one of us wasn’t allowed to play. Tell you what,” he brightened with an idea. “I’ll talk to Mac and Deeks about it. If we suspect that someone’s blocking you, we’ll get Tony to fix it. He’s the one that came up with this, after all.”

That made Harry feel a little better.

It’s not that he was complaining – though that’s what it felt like sometimes -, he just wanted to hang out with his friends and have fun. Was that too much to ask?

“Well, now,” Hermione smiled brightly at them as Palmer went off to seek counsel. “That settles that. Now, we just wait. You’ll see, Harry.”

* *

As the day wore on, however, the apples started diminishing, people were called out more than once and Harry still found himself on dry land.

Ron and Hermione were really starting to worry about it. Especially when Palmer hadn’t come back.

“Surely it couldn’t have taken so long to figure something out?” Hermione tsked.

Ron craned his neck to see where the other Americans went as Tony kept an eye on the players. Harry also tried to find the three, but they were nowhere to be found.

“Weren’t they right there a minute ago?” Harry mused, nodding at a spot not far from them.

“That’s what I thought, too,” Ron shrugged.

Hermione worried her bottom lip for a moment before setting brown eyes on Tony with hesitant determination.

Harry wondered about it, but soon knew why.

Once the latest group came back in, Hermione managed to get Tony’s attention and he jogged over without a second thought.

“What’s going on?” he looked them over.

“Harry hasn’t had a turn, yet,” Hermione told him. “We were wondering if there was a problem with whatever system you came up with. And… well. We were kind of thinking the Order…”

“Has something to do with it,” Tony nodded as he finished her thought. “Well, I will admit that I was holding Harry up, but only for my own amusement. See,” he turned to Harry, “I wanted to get you out there with a bunch of your friends to watch you guys in action, but it’s taken quite a bit longer than I expected. Don’t worry, though. You’ll end up on the lake before time runs out.”

“Are you sure?” Ron wanted to know, the others relaxing at that.

“Yup,” he assured before looking around. “Where did those three run off to this time?”

“I don’t know,” Harry shrugged. “We looked up and they were gone.”

“Huh.”

Sure enough, not an hour later, Harry was called out to join the seven others – including Gabby – on the water.

Tony helped him into his little car, Harry blinking as he found that Tony had charmed all of the cars into accommodating for height so that he found room to stretch.

“In okay?” Tony checked.

“Yeah,” he was careful not to move too much to upset the car.

“Don’t worry too much on that,” Tony assured, watching him get comfortable. “Remember how all the players had to wait until a minute before we started? That was to give your cars time to adjust for weight. Once that’s accomplished, it’ll get easier.”

“Okay,” Harry thought that sounded fine. “What do I need to do?”

“Just sit and let the car drive,” he patted his shoulder and Harry started slightly as his little car took that as the signal to move.

Harry watched as he drifted along, the other players taking their time. He drifted past the crowd and waved back at Ron and Hermione as they stood at the water’s edge. He spied Mac, Deeks and Palmer slightly hidden in the woods as he slowly passed the last of the crowd and he wondered what they were doing over there with some of the slips of paper Tony had given out. Ginny had tracked Palmer down to tell him that the problem had been fixed, so Harry wasn’t sure what they were on about.

The ride along the edges got smoother and easier as it went. Harry tried practicing on catching apples, but the apples just floated through the bucket like it wasn’t even there. That was one way to keep from cheating.

The rocking got noticeably fainter and softer as Harry was drifted to an area a bit away from the others. Gabby was on his left, blue eyes on the apples and ears out for the whistle signaling to begin.

Looking around at the others revealed similar stances, so Harry uncertainly did the same, keeping in mind to watch out for Gabby. He remembered the Second Task well.

Tony’s voice called out across the water with instructions that were more reminders than anything else since they all heard it several times before.

Harry felt tension grow as Tony counted down. He started tensing in anticipation for the moment to begin and almost ended up in the water as he heard the whistle and started scooping apples.

He could hear the crowd cheering for their team as his car started moving on its own accord, chasing the apples and letting him scoop as much as he could.

Splashing and cheers were just barely audible over the beating of his heart and blood rushing through his veins much in the same way that going after the Snitch would make him feel.

It was the spirit of competition that made time fly until he was trying to figure out why he was no longer getting apples in the bucket and the end whistle was ringing out over the area.

“Harry, that was fantastic!” Hermione grabbed her sheepish friend when he finally got back on land.

“Brilliant!” Ron patted him on the back.

“It wasn’t that different from when you two went out,” he protested, absently hugging Hermione back.

“Yeah, right,” Tony huffed from his spot next to them. “You three almost knocked me back into the water.”

Harry smiled slightly as he remembered congratulating his three best friends after their own rounds, so maybe it was his turn.

The game wasn’t over yet, though. Not by a long shot.

There were several more rounds they went through before the players were cut down to four as the apple supply diminished.

“That went faster than I thought it would,” Deeks admitted, he and the other two showing up some time after Harry’s first round.

“Make it a competition,” Tony shrugged. “The chores get done every time.”

“Not paperwork,” Palmer pointed out. “We’ve tried.”

“And still managed to fall asleep,” Mac muttered darkly.

“I heard about that,” Tony chuckled, hooking an arm around the brunette’s neck and giving her a squeeze. “What you lawyers get up to.”

Palmer grinned, too, obviously in on the joke.

They stood talking for a few moments until Dumbledore drew everyone’s attention as he glided out to the dock where the cars floated in wait for the new batch.

“If I may,” the group looked at each other before giving him their undivided attention, “since we have little time left until we go to refresh ourselves in preparation for our evening meal, we shall have to cut this delightful afternoon short.” He chuckled at the groans and boos and protests emanating from the crowd. “Not to worry,” he assured. “There are not many apples left, as I’m sure our young Tony has noted. As the players have dwindled down to four, I would like to announce one of the last groups. Because there are a total of four of our American friends here, it has been decided that they will go out next.”

“Who decided that?” Tony frowned. He eyed his fellows with suspicion.

“Not us,” Deeks denied.

“Come on,” Mac shrugged. “Sooner we get this done, the sooner we can eat.”

The Trio watched as the Americans settled into their cars and were floated out, Dumbledore making the apples come out from the reeds and other plants to float more or less in the middle.

“What’s the count so far?” Ginny came up to them.

“I don’t know,” Hermione shook her head. “I think Tonks or Professor Lupin could figure out, though.”

“Maybe not,” Ron watched his sister go off in search of one of them with a smile.

“What do you mean?” Hermione frowned at him.

She and Harry watched his hand disappear into his pocket before retracting a small piece of paper and presenting it with a flourish.

Tony’s handwriting filled the bit of paper with what was obviously the score, revealing Team Yellow with the most and Red, Purple and Green coming in at that order.

“You didn’t steal that, did you?” she grabbed it, scandalized look on her face.

“No, Tony slipped that in my pocket when he went out last time,” Ron shrugged. “He never went to get it back.”

“He’s been giving that to you every time?” Harry turned to look out at the water where the Americans seemed to be cheerfully insulting each other using terms that Harry figured were something they picked up at their Muggle jobs.

“Yeah,” Ron answered with a shrug. “Said that he wouldn’t lose it if it was with me.”

“That makes sense,” Hermione looked up thoughtfully at them. “He told me that he wanted to spend some time with Ron and I after spending so much time with Harry, so maybe this is to show you that he trusts you, Ron.”

Harry smiled as his taller friend ducked his head with a shy smile, tips of his ears slightly red. Harry was glad that Tony was taking this marriage bond as an opportunity to get closer to their other two friends.

Actually, if he thought about it, the Trio had been ‘dating’ longer than they knew Tony, so maybe this would have been brought up sooner or later regardless.

The whistle blew and the Americans started their round.

Splashing was pretty much all the Trio could see from them for the time now reduced to three and a half minutes as players and apples got less and less.

The four returned to the dock sopping wet, but with triumphant grins on their faces.

“What happened to you lot, then?” Ron crossed his arms.

“Well,” Deeks grinned manically. “You would have to have been there.”

Palmer’s smile was quiet, but he snorted in amusement all the same.

Mac glanced at him and her own smile grew into a grin before her brown eyes crinkled as she began to snicker.

Deeks glanced over and beamed as Tony started chuckling.

It didn’t take long for all four to start laughing hysterically.

“What’s so funny?” Harry felt a smile tugging on his own lips.

“I don’t know,” Hermione started giggling.

“I reckon they’re mental,” Ron grinned widely.

Soon, they were laughing, too.

The seven of them eventually came down from their laughter, all weak with mirth and on the ground.

“If you are quite finished,” Dumbledore smiled indulgently at them, having already gone ahead with two groups.

“Sorry,” Palmer wiped his eyes under his glasses. “That felt good.”

“Oh, did it,” Tony still chuckled.

“We’re all certifiable,” Mac sighed, contentedly melting against the grass in a happy puddle.

“Oh, you know it,” Deeks smiled widely.

“Wouldn’t have it any other way,” Ron tilted his head and grinned as he caught Harry’s eye.

Time eventually ran out and the game was wrapping up.

“Well,” Deeks looked at his watch. “It’s certainly been fun,” he told them as Dumbledore had managed to take control of the last bit of the game. Tony had let him.

Harry smiled somewhat sadly. “It was.” He didn’t want the day – or fun – to end.

“Well,” Mac rubbed her hands together. “The day’s not over yet.”

“No,” Tony agreed. “We still have tonight and tomorrow to get through.”

“That, and something else,” Mac smiled slyly. “Earlier, when Palmer said something about Harry not being out, we thought it would be fun if we got him out. Then Ginny came over and told us not to bother. Well, after that, we decided to match him up anyway, but we also had an agenda.”

Tony tilted his head at her. “Which would be?”

“And now,” Dumbledore called to the crowd. “The last match of the day will be between some very dear friends.”

“Mac…”

“These dear friends have rarely been apart in the time since they met and even more rarely been on different sides.”

“You didn’t.”

Mac just gave him an innocent smile.

“Harry, Ron, Tony and Hermione,” Dumbledore smiled at them. “If you would please step forward and finish the game once and for all.”

Tony stared at Mac, who shrugged.

“It was an interesting twist,” she told him flippantly.

“Go for it,” Palmer urged.

Harry and the others exchanged glances.

“I don’t know,” Hermione worried her bottom lip.

“It’s just a game, right?” Deeks nudged Harry’s arm.

“Y-yeah… I guess.”

“Alright, then,” Tony gave a nod. “C’mon, Trio,” he led the way, the friends reluctantly following.

Once in their cars, Tony made them drift all together. “Listen,” he told them as they moved along. “Let’s make a promise right here and now. After this, there will be no hard feelings should one of us win and the other three not. No hard feelings?” he held up his right hand.

“No hard feelings,” Harry raised his.

“No,” Hermione echoed, doing the same.

They looked at Ron, who fiddled with his small bucket handle thoughtfully.

“Well?” Tony prompted. “Ron?”

He glanced up and let his blue eyes scan between the three of them. He bit the corner of his lip in thought before nodding. “Alright, no hard feelings,” Harry breathed as the tension left his frame. “But… we’re going to be doing something after Christmas,” Ron told them. “I don’t know when, but we will.”

“What?” Hermione wanted to know.

Ron hesitated before shaking his head. “After Christmas,” he repeated.

The other three looked at each other before Tony shrugged. “Sure.”

The four were drifted to their spots and moved to face different directions.

Harry breathed as he gripped the handle, ready to get this over with so they could eat. Honestly, he was starting to get a little hungry.

Dumbledore reminded them of the rules, but there was something added that made Harry look sharply at Tony, who’s head came up to frown at the Headmaster.

“While you will also be chasing apples in the manner you have all day,” he said, “you will also be finding them. Some have drifted off from the crowd. You will find them and scoop them up while also gathering from the assembled apples around you. Since you are the last group, you will have ten minutes to gather all the remaining apples. The first who gathers them all will win fifty apples for your team in addition to the final count. On your marks, get set – ” the whistle blew.

They froze for a moment, the information sinking in, before they jerked into action.

Harry immediately started looking for apples, sharp green eyes picking several out. Tony was doing the same and going after them.

The next nine minutes were spent scooping as many apples as he could lay his eyes on, adrenalin flooding through him with every apple taken.

When the time went off and Harry could no longer find any more apples, he leant back against the back of the car with a sigh as he tried shaking off the energy rush.

“Well,” Hermione drifted by, looking around. “That’s that.”

And it was.

Ron and Tony looked damp, having gotten into a splash battle over some of the apples, as they headed back to the crowd amidst cheers and applause.

“That was so much fun,” one of the Weasleys enthused as the crowd started to trickle back to their living quarters to get ready for dinner.

“What was the score?” Neville wanted to know.

Tony waved his hand and the score paper appeared in his hand. The group waited patiently for the results, AJ and the Triplets coming to join them.

Harry watched Tony read the paper, then again. “Something wrong?” he asked after watching Tony read it for the eighth time with a puzzled look on his face.

“No,” he said slowly, before looking around at them with a frown. It was almost like Tony was looking for something and Harry was just about to ask when Tony did a double-take and narrowed his eyes at – “Palmer! Why you – You did _not_ do what I think you did!”

“Depends,” he blinked innocently. “What did you think I did?”

“Palmer, you did _not_ – There is no _way_ –”

Mac leaned over Tony’s shoulder to read the paper before she barked out a laugh.

“Palmer, Palmer, Palmer,” she grinned, brown eyes sparkling. “And here I thought you were the good one.”

“Well,” he shrugged.

Deeks and the Trio looked between them before the blond grabbed the paper. “A four way tie?” he blinked back up at them. “Huh. Who would’ve thought?”

“Really?” Harry felt a smile on his face.

“Let me see,” Hermione grabbed it from him.

Harry watched her brown eyes run across it, the look of wonder growing on her face, before glancing at Tony to see him lightly tap the back of Palmer’s head as Mac wrapped herself around the curly haired American with amusement. Tony was shaking his head as Palmer said something, but there was no mistaking the fondness in Tony’s green eyes.

The three of them really did have a history, didn’t they?

Harry smiled as he watched them.

Even though the moments were few and far between, the three before him could still be caught up in an interaction that spoke of their friendship and the countless memories they shared. It was sort of like seeing Tony and Sherlock bantering with each other and the way Peter Burke poked fun at Mac and Palmer.

Feeling eyes settle on him, Harry turned to find Deeks smiling with a sort of wistfulness.

“You, too?”

Harry was struck by just how much he and Deeks had in common when it came to the other three Americans. The feeling of being the outsider came to mind first and foremost.

“Yeah,” he nodded. “Do you think we’ll be good enough friends with them like that?”

“I’m sure we will,” Hermione spoke up next to him. Neither Harry or Deeks had known that she and Ron were listening in on them and watching with the same longing.

Ginny was reluctant to break the moment, but… “We should probably be going off to get ready,” she told them.

“Yeah,” Tony nodded. The group slowly headed out for the tent to change and refresh themselves for the rest of the evening.

The girls got the showers first and the boys followed after them.

Harry was drying his hair in the living room when Mac came out dressed in a pretty dress that was in shades of brown.

“Don’t you look handsome,” she smiled as she tapped the tea kettle with her wand.

“Thanks,” he flushed. He didn’t really think that much of his suit, except that Sparky had personally done his and Ron’s. Tony had evidently been wearing her suits for years and had decided on his favorite one.

Mac smiled wider as AJ came out, too.

The Hufflepuff had on a red dress with golden accents that made Harry chuckle.

“What House are you really in?” he had to ask.

“Well,” she twirled around to watch the skirt billow around her. “Piper said that I was in the Lion’s Den, so I have to look like one, too.”

“Yeah, I can tell that’s the theme,” Deeks quipped as he entered the room. His suit looked like new, with a red trim and a red and gold tie. “Did Sparky make this, too?”

“She did,” Mac nodded. “This is also from Spark of Light,” she looked down at her dress. “It pays to be friends with a clothes designer.”

Palmer and Neville came out soon as well.

The American was in navy blue with silver comets sometimes exploding somewhere on him, while Harry’s roommate was in a plant themed suit.

“Sparky makes Palmer’s, too,” Mac explained. “Looks like she also made Neville’s.”

“Why stop there?” Tony asked, leading the rest of them. “She made Ron’s, as you know. And Gabby’s dress and Ginny’s and Mi’s.”

“How did she do it, though?” Ginny put her hands on her hips, looking very nice in colors that made her coloring look like it was made for the dress instead of the other way around.

“Well,” Tony shrugged. “Sparky has her ways.”

“Ten to one odds,” Mac said into Harry’s ear, “Tony sent her all the measurements before she got here yesterday.”

Harry smiled back. That sounded right. But when did he have the time to do that?

Gabby left to join her sister as the others stayed to joke around a little longer.

“Are we ready for tomorrow?” Deeks rubbed his hands together.

“As we’ll ever be,” Ron told him.

“Don’t be nervous,” AJ patted the redhead’s arm. “It’ll be fine. I saw one of the rehearsals and it went off without a hitch.”

“Yeah,” G. Benson – it was easier to tell when they wore dresses in their House colors, though Harry was going to watch to see if two or all were going to dart off somewhere to switch clothes – agreed. “I wouldn’t worry.”

“You got them all trained,” R. Benson beamed at them widely.

H. Benson agreed with her sisters. “I can just imagine the looks on everyone’s faces,” she giggled.

“You got the confetti, though, right?” Harry asked Tony, who ruffled his hair.

“Of course. You guys just worry about your parts. We’ll do ours.”

“What about the radios?” Hermione frowned. They hadn’t got theirs back yet.

“Tomorrow,” he winked.

Harry knew he had something up his sleeve with the second wink at Mac, who nodded.

“Oh, yes,” Mac blinked, as if remembering something suddenly. “I’m going to need everyone to sign something for me.” She took out a scroll from her purse. “Doesn’t matter what order. Oh, and get the twins and Gabby to do this, too.”

“What’s it for?” Ron tilted his head as AJ signed first.

“I’d tell you,” she lifted a shoulder, “but it would ruin the effect.”

Palmer and Tony knew something, but Harry decided he wanted to be surprised, so he signed, too.

“Hey,” Harry heard Deeks move to Tony. “What about our wedding present?”

“We’ll do that tomorrow,” Mac assured.

“What wedding present?” Ginny turned to them.

“That’s a surprise to you, too.”

The Trio exchanged looks, but it appeared to be an American thing, so they let them be.

“This oughta be good,” G. Benson grinned. “I only see a look like that when somethin’s going to happen.”

Everyone signed their names on Mac’s scroll by the time Gabby poked her head in.

“Tony? I ‘ope you do not mind,” she came to stand next to them with an uncertain look on her face and Lyric Weasley on her heels.

“Am I going to regret saying yes?”

Lyric glanced at Gabby before rolling her eyes. “Mr. Tony,” she took up, “it’s a Delacour tradition that an Italian must take part as a member of the bridal party. Fleur said that it’s to bring luck to the marriage as a blessing.”

Tony stared. “O-oh… Okay… I- I’m … honored?”

“I’ve never heard of that tradition,” Palmer shrugged when Tony looked over at him.

“What about the maid of honor?” Hermione frowned. “Did she manage to pick one between Gabby and Ginny?”

Gabby and Lyric just looked at each other.

“It’s tradition,” Ron shrugged, “so why not?”

“Yeah,” Deeks nodded. “Go for it.”

“Yes,” Gabby perked up, moving to hug Tony’s arm. “Come. I will escort you.”

The Italian glanced back at them as the small blonde dragged him out with a puzzled look on his face.

“Lyric,” Ginny frowned at the younger girl. “Which one of us is the maid of honor?”

“Well,” she sighed. “Fleur didn’t choose. That leaves Mr. Tony to take it by default, since he’s the only Italian here.”

Mac tilted her head. “Lyric… was that true what you said about a Delacour family tradition?”

“Yeah,” she nodded. “As of five minutes ago. Fleur really wanted to make Mr. Tony her maid of honor because of the dresses, but Charlie told her that he wouldn’t do it if that was the reason.”

“That was a trick?” Deeks grinned. “Is Tony really going to have to walk the aisle, too?”

“I think so,” she shrugged. “He did Fleur a huge favor, so she’s repaying him with a big role in her wedding. Aunt Molly wasn’t sure what to make of it, really.”

“That’s sweet,” Hermione cooed, pride filling her up at Tony’s accomplishment. Harry and Ron just looked at each other uncertainly.

“It’s not unusual,” H. Benson shrugged at them. “One of our girl cousins was someone’s best man.”

“We should probably go over now,” Mac told them all.

They moved to leave the tent when Deeks stopped in his tracks, making Ron walk into him.

“Hey!” the blond frowned. “There’s no way there was a tie!”

“You’re right,” Mac nodded.

“No, listen,” Deeks told her, restarting his forward momentum. “There’s only one way that could happen and it’s only if…”

“Someone cheated by fixing the numbers,” Mac finished. “Someone did.”

Harry remembered what Mac said at the swimming hole and eyed Palmer, who looked back innocently.

“Why would you do that?” Ron frowned at him.

“Just to see if I could,” he shrugged. “Tony’s good at charming stuff, so I wanted to know if I could break even.”

“I think you succeeded,” Deeks told him. “I just don’t know if I’m trusting you with keeping score ever again.”

It appeared that the real score was forever lost, but Harry wasn't at all going to mind. Some things were just better off unknown.

The reception area was transformed from a bunch of tables, chairs and benches in the field to tables, benches and chairs bordering a large dance area.

Fairy lights were set all over the place, some even free floating through the air. The tables had sparkly shades of blue and accented with orange to represent both families. Square, circular and rectangular tables were spread all over with three tables pushed together for groom and bride and their parents to sit.

As Harry was directed to one of the circular tables with Hermione, Ginny, Gabby, Ron, AJ and Neville, he noted that there were just plates, goblets and silverware at present.

“They’re going to bring the food out later,” Ginny explained, perching on her chair.

From where he sat, Harry could see the high table flanked by who he recognized as Order members on tables situated to either side. On his right and across the dance area, the Americans cornered Tony as the four [hunched together](http://archiveofourown.org/works/6679066/chapters/15276712) in the middle of empty seats which were to be filled at the after-wedding the next day.

“What do you think they’re talking about?” Ron twisted to look in that direction.

“I don’t know.”

Dumbledore took the floor again, welcoming the guests on behalf of the Weasley and Delacour families. Before dinner and after a few more speeches, Ron surprised them all when he asked to make one and Harry, Hermione and Tony were the targets for a lot of it. There were several coos and tears secretly wiped away as the embarrassed youngest of the Weasley boys slunk back to his seat where Hermione broke character for a moment to hug him before scurrying back to sniffle with Ginny and Gabby.

The dinner went on with a slightly international flare that appeared to be a precursor to tomorrow’s menu.

Harry’s table had enough experience between them to avoid the unpleasant foods (“Non, Mi,” Gabby scowled at the dish she was about to try like it had personally done her an injustice. “You want zis one.”), but there were some that none could accurately identify.

Harry was hesitant to ask Tony, who seemed to be doing something if the furtive and suspicious looks being directed from the four of them were any indication, but they couldn’t figure it out.

Ron had tried one and seemed to like it.

They got through dinner and never did figure out what the Americans were up to over there, but Ginny figured there was something in that blue drink that caused them to go a little loopy after laughter was again heard originating from that direction.

After dinner – and a stunning discovery about Mac and Deeks whilst deep within the orchard -, the Trio helped Palmer drag the pair to the tent as Tony was taken off to locations unknown by the Headmaster for their meeting (“What do you reckon the meeting’s about?” “I don’t know,” Harry shrugged at Ron. “It’s probably not that serious considering it’s at the Shrieking Shack…” If it had been, they would have been in the school behind closed, locked and warded doors, but one never knew with Dumbledore.), though it was kind of slow going with Padfoot running around their legs and Mac and Deeks being set off at every little thing.

“Are we sure there wasn’t alcohol in that drink?” Ginny eventually joined them right as they managed to get to the tent.

“Yeah,” Palmer nodded, “just sugar. Lots of it.”

“But Ron had his five cups,” Hermione protested. “Why isn’t he bouncing off the walls, too?” they turned to eye him thoughtfully.

“Dunno,” he shrugged, him and Palmer snickering with Deeks as he hung almost limply between them. “Maybe it was something in the food they were eating, too.”

They would later find out what exactly occurred, but it wouldn’t be for another year at least. In the meantime they could only wonder as they got tea into them to flush their systems. And Ron just in case.

Harry did have to admit that it was entertaining to watch the almost drunk pair create silly things with their magic, Palmer and Ron curbing things before they got too bad.

They got the pair into their pajamas as they slowly came off the sugar high and an hour was spent quietly drinking tea as the rest of their tent mates came back for the night and Palmer used his small radio to tune into a classical music station.

“Ah, what a day,” Deeks lay in a content puddle on the floor, Padfoot draped over his legs.

“It’s going to be better tomorrow,” Ginny told him before going to put her own pajamas on. The others slowly trickled out of the room to do the same.

“I almost don’t want the night to end,” Hermione returned to curl up on a cushion between Harry and Ron. “But I also can’t wait for tomorrow.”

“Yeah,” Harry agreed.

The time grew later and they knew that they needed to go to bed with the rest of them as they slowly went to their sleeping bags, but they also knew that they would sleep easier if they knew where Tony was.

They drifted between chess and reading as they and Deeks were eventually left, the blond having decided that the floor would be just as much use as his sleeping bag and was currently dead to the world. Padfoot had sleepily made his way back to where he was sharing a tent with Moony nearer the Burrow.

Hermione got up and stretched. “Maybe he’s back already,” she suggested. “Do you think we should take a walk?”

The boys glanced at each other and shrugged.

“Don’t see what it would hurt,” Harry got up after her.

The friends made sure their wands were in their pockets as they quietly left the tent.

Many of the other guests had already gone to bed a long time ago, but there were still some that could be heard laughing as the Trio passed.

It was after midnight when they found themselves in the orchard, Ron’s wand light illuminating the ground.

“I wonder what happened with the apples in the swimming hole,” Hermione still puzzled over it all this time later.

“Tony can probably figure it out,” Harry shrugged, kicking a small rock ahead of him. “He’s good at stuff like that.”

“Hm.”

They ended up at the orchard fence and sat on it for long moments, just enjoying the stillness of the summer night air and the presence of each other.

Sometimes, Harry was sure that he was living in a dream with how happy he was, but then something would come along and make him realize that he wasn’t dreaming.

“Maybe we should head back,” Hermione said quietly. She didn’t want to speak louder than she had to, either.

“Yeah,” Ron agreed. “Tony probably doubled back and he’s asleep right now.”

“Not yet… not long.”

They straightened as they swore they heard Tony’s voice, faint as it was.

“Tony?” Hermione sounded alarmed, Harry feeling the rush of his own concern filling him as they jumped off the fence and started looking around for him.

A tired hum sent them back into the trees, stopping every so often to call and head in the direction that they thought he was in, until they rounded a thick trunk and almost tripped over his legs as he lay sprawled back against the tree.

“Tony,” Harry knelt down beside him. “Are you okay?”

Ron brought his light close and they started slightly as Tony’s face was illuminated.

He looked kind of pale, which was the first thing that Harry noticed. The Italian’s eyes sluggishly moved to focus on them.

“What happened?” Hermione softly touched Tony’s hand.

“Tired,” he sighed deeply, looking ready to drop into the ether of sleep right there on the grass.

“Is he sick?” Ron frowned, glancing around to be sure they were alone.

Hermione swept a hand across Tony’s forehead and shook hers. “No fever,” she told them, “but there’s something on his face,” she frowned at her hand and almost shrieked as a light suddenly clicked on beside her.

“Rule Nine…” Tony smiled tiredly. “And… half…Sh’lock style.”

That could have meant anything.

Tony must have registered the quizzical looks on their faces and breathed a tired laugh. “Cliff.”

“Oh,” Harry nodded, still not quite sure, but sure enough to know that he would always carry a torch around Sherlock himself having met the man. Not that he was bad or anything, but the older Brit had this habit of forgetting to tell people important information…

(“Okay, Harry?” Tony chuckled, dusting him off as he straightened his glasses after he fell flat on his face.

“Did he say ‘duck’?” Harry frowned after Sherlock’s coat disappearing around the corner.

“It’s been my experience that you have to look alive, especially with that one. You could fall down the rabbit hole and he would only warn you about it three minutes later.”)

Hermione used the torch to inspect her hand. “It might just be me, but there seems to be some sort of … I don’t know. Substance? Potion?” she cautiously sniffed, but shook her head. “It feels kind of greasy.”

The torch light shone on Tony, who didn’t seem to mind the flash in his eyes, where Harry caught sight of a sheen on his face and some on his neck.

“Where did you go?” he touched a finger to Tony’s neck and found that Hermione had been right about the greasy substance. “What is it?”

Ron swiped the same area. “Dunno. Tony?”

He hummed slightly, eyes beginning to slide close.

“Let’s get you in the tent,” Hermione sighed, putting the puzzle away for another day. “It’s late.”

“Come on,” Harry and Ron pulled Tony up as best they could, but Tony seemed too exhausted to do anything but put all his weight on them. Harry grunted under the almost dead weight, but couldn’t do much more than almost drop them back down.

Hermione watched their fruitless attempts before telling Ron to use a lightening charm on their friend, but not before making the redhead practice on rocks first.

“She doesn’t trust me?” he huffed, casting the spell a few feet from where she kept trying to keep Tony awake.

Harry shrugged. Personally, he would’ve been more at ease with Hermione doing it, but they were both still not old enough yet.

Once Hermione was satisfied, Ron made Tony lighter and the boys found it a lot easier to bring him up. They made their way through the apple trees with Hermione lighting the way using the torch Tony let her use.

Halfway there, however, Harry frowned as he started feeling a strangely familiar dragging tiredness somewhere inside of him.

Ahead, Hermione yawned tiredly. “That’s odd,” she noted, rubbing her eyes. “I wasn’t that sleepy a few moments ago.”

“I wasn’t, either,” Harry told her.

Tony seemed to be solely concentrating on keeping one foot in front of the other and not paying attention to the conversation around him.

“I’m getting tired, too,” Ron frowned. “But… it’s not… I don’t remember feeling this kind of tired…”

“Yeah,” Harry nodded. “But you know you must have because it seems like you’ve done it before.”

“It has to be the bond,” Hermione shrugged, sweeping the light from side to side. “Nothing else about it.”

“What?” Harry frowned at her back. “You mean that the bond wants us to be close to Tony all the time, now?”

“No, I just meant that it’s your birthday exactly one week from now. And remember those … hallucinations that Tony kept experiencing?”

“Makes… sound… crazy,” he weakly protested.

“I don’t know what else to call it,” she said apologetically. “And think about it. Maybe the Headmaster took him somewhere a long way from here and we’ve gotten used to Tony being literally in arm’s reach. That’s probably something to do with it, right?”

“Where could Dumbledore have taken him, then?” Ron yawned again. “Hogwarts?”

“I don’t know. The bond might be changing to accommodate Harry and I reaching our majorities.”

“So, what are we going to do when he has to go back to America and us to school?” Harry had to point out.

Hermione didn’t have an answer to that, but it weighed on their minds when they got to their sleeping bags.

They took his suit jacket off, his shoes and socks, but didn’t go further than that.

“He’ll just have to sleep in his clothes,” Hermione watched Ron take the charm off and moved to her bag.

Harry and Ron followed suit and all three were out between one heartbeat and the next, that tiredness pulling them under with ruthless efficiency, but they didn’t give a further thought to anything that didn’t manifest in their dreams.

The night was left to bear witness to their slumber, and to the signs of a future forever changed.

No memory - or trace - would remain.

 * ** *


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> let me know if the links don't work, okay?
> 
> It is now that I realize how long this story is. -_-u
> 
> And there's still a little bit left to write before I wrap this story up. I've been so busy writing The 'Big One' (Secrets) that I haven't thought about this one for a while. Sorry.

* * *

 

A shriek begun to pull him out of the darkness.

The ice water being dumped on his person finished it.

“Bloody hell!” he leaped up on reflex. “What was that for!”

“It’s about time you four got up!” Mac scolded. “Breakfast’s already started! What did you do last night?”

Harry blinked at her before glancing down at his soaked clothes.

“You didn’t have to dump ice on us,” Ron shook his arms, drops falling from the ends of his hair.

“Yes, we did,” H. Benson scowled. “We couldn’t get you up. And we _tried_.”

“Good Merlin,” Harry glanced back at Hermione, the one who shrieked. She wrung her hair out as Tony shivered next to her, still dazed.

“We don’t have much time to waste,” Mac told them. “The others are just arriving and we have our wedding present pretty much finished. The second part is well under way, thanks to Palmer and Deeks.”

Harry blinked around, absently thanking AJ as she wordlessly handed over his glasses, and noted that all but he, Hermione, Ron and Tony were up and almost dressed. Gabby and Ginny were still in their pajamas.

He felt strangely drained, clambering up to stand with Ron and Hermione.

“Come on, Tony,” Mac grabbed his arm and tried hauling him up. “You all have to get dressed. Hermione, you, Ginny and Gabby have to meet Fleur after breakfast to get your dresses on.”

“Huh?” Tony stared owlishly at her.

“What in Merlin’s name did you do last night?” she demanded to know, throwing her hands up.

“I… Don’t know…?” he frowned.

“Never mind. All four of you. Dressed. Breakfast. Five minutes,” she ordered, dragging everyone else out with her.

“Yeah,” Tony nodded to himself. “She’s a Marine.”

“Tony,” Hermione looked over at him. “What did happen last night? Why are we so tired?”

“Hell if I know,” he shook his head. “The last thing I remember clearly was the Shrieking Shack. We were leaving to come back and something must have been in that lemon drop he gave me because I don’t remember much after that. Then I think something about you three and cherries.”

“Don’t you mean apples?” Ron frowned at him as Harry started taking his damp clothes off.

“No, cherries,” Tony insisted. “I think it was cherries. Something about it that might have been cherries…”

Hermione ducked out to change as the boys changed into dry clothes. They rejoined her and they headed out of the tent toward the Burrow.

“What exactly happened last night?” she wanted to know. “I vaguely remember Tony lying in the orchard, but it fazes out between us coming back and laying on my bag.”

“I remember less than that,” Tony sighed, fingers running through his still damp hair and leaving soft spikes in their wake. “Not exactly the right time to lose our marbles, is it? We have the two part surprise for the wedding and a lot of details to go over, huh?”

Harry didn’t know if they would ever figure it out, but shook it off. He couldn’t help feeling like he was missing something important that he was supposed to be asking, but couldn’t for the life of him remember what.

Mac met them outside the kitchen and rushed them in. They were hurried through breakfast more efficiently than Mrs. Weasley would, but she was no doubt busy with last minute details so her absence was noted and discarded, before Harry and Ron were sent back to the tent with Neville to dress up as Hermione was carted off upstairs and Tony was dragged off elsewhere.

Harry fully woke up when he was able to sit for a moment, half dressed and staring at Ron and Neville as they struggled into their suits.

He rubbed his eyes under his glasses and yawned. “Those are different suits,” he noted.

“Yeah, you got one, too,” Ron pointed him in the right direction.

“Really? Why?” he frowned, moving toward his clothes.

“You’re apparently going to be up there with me,” he told him.

“ _What_?”

“I think Mac said something about not wanting Harry left out?” Neville mused.

“I heard Hermione was going to be a bridesmaid,” Palmer spoke up from where he was working on his tie with a frown.

Harry still wasn’t sure he was awake because none of this was making any sense.

About an hour before the wedding was supposed to start, Tony reappeared and all but pounced on his suit, seeming to magic it on with how fast he put it on.

Harry managed to get his attention as he did something with his hair.

“Tony, Ron told me that I’m going to be actually participating in the wedding, too,” he watched Tony put some sort of gel in his hair.

“Yeah,” he winced. “About that,” he turned with an apologetic look. “I don’t know what I was thinking, but I ended up making Hermione participate and then I realized that you would be by yourself with those two up there. I … may have said something to Fleur that was along those lines and I think she’s made up for it by including you. Obviously, that meant I had to go along, too, because everyone’s evidently decided that we are a quartet aside from you being a trio and where one is, the other three aren’t far behind. And don't think I don't suspect that 'Italian being Maid of Honor' being a complete - ”

“Oh. So it’s mostly because Fleur doesn’t want anyone left out?” Harry nodded thoughtfully.

“Well, Dumbledore’s people weren’t exactly thrilled with the idea of you being a sitting duck, but Mac, Deeks and Palmer will be right there in front of you and Dumbledore will be up there anyway, so not many were opposed.”

Harry had to wonder if Mrs. Weasley was one of the ones who was against his taking part in this event and – while he did understand – he was kind of hurt. “I think it would have been worth it,” he muttered, “if I got to be up there with all of you before what decides to happen does.”

“I know, buddy,” he shook his head. “Believe me, we already have as much stuff up as we currently can – in addition to the other wards up – so I highly doubt anything will happen without fifty alarms going off.”

Resigned to the protection – some unnecessary (don’t think that it escaped his notice – and those of his friends – that Deeks, Palmer and Mac were being followed by the Order) -, Harry finished dressing and left with AJ, the triplets, Deeks, Mac, Palmer and Tony to the wedding area.

Harry and Tony split off from the others who went to take their seats on Bill’s side of the aisle, all of them looking around at the decorations of Weasley red, Delacour blue and white.

Soon, however, it was time.

Music started and the boys – Charlie, Fred, George, Ron and Harry (“Where’s Percy?” “…” Harry didn’t ask again.) – walked down the aisle with Bill, all of them arm in arm as the twins had suggested.

There was some chuckles and shaking heads as Harry passed with his arm firmly ensconced in Ron’s and they exchanged grins when they caught sight of Mac, Deeks and Palmer in front as they settled into place.

Palmer snapped a picture of them with his camera (“Granted, it’s not like Tony’s,” he showed them yesterday when apples were in the water, “but it gets the job done.”) and waved.

Harry saw Mac catch Deeks wiping his eyes and leaned forward with a teasing grin.

“Are you _crying_?” she poked his arm as she leaned behind Palmer.

“No,” he obviously was. “Just some sand in my eyes.”

“At a backyard wedding in Britain?”

“Dirt?”

Everyone fell silent as the girls walked out – a sheepish Tony leading with a matching tie – and Harry couldn’t tear his eyes from them.

They looked incredible.

First, Gabby with her small bouquet smiled brightly with her blonde hair gathered in pigtails tied with ribbon and sparkles caught the light from where the glitter caught the sun. Her dress was about knee length and a girlish pink, the ribbons at her shoulders matching those in her hair, with simple curved designs in Beaux batons blue.

Next, Ginny appeared with a similar style dress – only with one ribbon at her left shoulder – and in a slight maroon sort of color, not quite pink and not quite red, and also with Beaux batons blue designs that were a bit more complex. Her red hair was also tied with ribbon matching the dress, but she wore two braids instead of pigtails – also sprinkled with glitter.

Hermione followed, her scarlet-like red dress hanging on one shoulder and falling a little past her knees – also with more complex designs than either of the younger girls. Her dark brown hair also shone with sparkles, two strips of hair on either side of her head brought back and tied in a clip that wasn’t her flower clip but pretty enough.

But _Fleur_.

She brought up the end of the line and she was _gorgeous_.

Her white strapless dress had a full length skirt that billowed around her – shorter in front to where it barely touched the ground and longer in back which created a small train - , lightly dragging on the carpet that was already strewn with flower petals coming from a floating basket that shook itself every once in awhile like Crookshanks did.

The sash around her waist was Beauxbatons blue, but the six pleats on the skirt of the dress starting from the waist had red accents that were only visible on the inside of the pleats. Her long blonde hair was like Hermione’s, but with the two strips braided and clasped at the back of her head with some sort of clip, the veil behind her clinging ever so delicately to her braids and there looked to be tear-drop diamonds strung into her wavy hair.

Harry watched her and her father round out the line and soon saw the theme.

Gabby was the youngest, so she was dressed as an innocent little girl. Ginny was older and her outfit represented that. Hermione was dressed as an older girl – yet not quite an adult -, leaving Fleur to be presented as a woman about to marry the man of her dreams.

The service was wonderful, though he hadn’t been to many for comparison.

Dumbledore presided over it, his voice delivering tear inducing words (“You _are_ crying.” “That’s what you’re concerned over? Poor Palmer over there’s practically sobbing his eyes out.”), and Harry didn’t miss a moment of it, his eyes and ears open for everything.

Eventually, though, it had to end and Harry found a spot away from the crowd as it surged to congratulate the pair.

“It was lovely,” Hermione found her way over to him, Ron not far behind.

“I thought it was, too,” Harry agreed. “You look nice.”

“Thank you,” she gave a twirl. “Fleur said it was last minute. I’m still trying to figure out how they came up with these things.”

“Believe you me,” Tony suddenly appeared next to Ron. “I’d like to know, too. I have no idea where it came from, I just don’t really think about it when I start drawing. To be honest, I thought Fleur was going to take me out when she dragged me off. By the way, is it against some kind of French culture thing for an older male to draw the younger sister of his new sister-in-law?”

“You designed the dresses?” Hermione raised her brows.

“Why so surprised? You forget I virtually lived with Sparky at school.”

“Tony,” Mac found them a moment later. “We need to get started.”

“Right,” he nodded. He stretched up to look for someone before disappearing back into the crowd.

“Trio,” Mac turned to them with a warm smile. “Why don’t you meet Palmer and Deeks over by the reception area? Everyone else will catch up to you soon enough.”

Exchanging looks, Harry shrugged and led the way.

Maybe it was an American thing.

When they trooped over there, however, they saw that Deeks and Palmer had been busy in such a short time.

The exact area they had been in last night had changed.

White, blue and reddish orange were now everywhere. Tablecloths and centerpieces flowed the color scheme into tasteful streams in addition to the faery lights strung overhead; streamers bordering the tables; balloons both on the dance floor and in the air; small lanterns weaving in and out and around lights, streamers and tables, sometimes bumping into the balloons and evidently having a squabble over flying space before peace was restored and both on their way…

“Good Merlin,” Ron stared.

“That wasn’t our idea,” Deeks wiped his slightly red eyes. “We put up the lanterns, the balloons and the centerpieces. Everything else was Mrs. Weasley’s idea. I guess Mrs. Delacour didn’t mind, but then I don’t really think that anything short of a mansion would get her approval either way.”

That was the truth.

Ever since Fleur and Gabby’s Mum got here, the matriarch had made her thoughts clear; not rich enough or good enough for my little girl, but I will still be watching him nonetheless.

“So, anyway,” Palmer sniffed into a handkerchief that looked suspiciously like the one AJ had just that morning, “I guess you’re here for the trip.”

“Mac just told us to meet you here,” Hermione looked uncertain.

“Ah, that way,” Deeks pointed at the area not too far from them. Harry followed his gaze and blinked as he found an army of chairs waiting for people to sit in them.

They were of all shapes, sizes, comfort levels…

“The white tags are really comfy,” Palmer offered as they moved to inspect them. “These are on loan from the Institute.”

“Creswell?” Ron blinked.

“Yeah. The Dean refused to let us do this with any others,” he shrugged. “He said that he doesn’t trust anyone else with Tony’s safety and I think it has something to do with Tony’s friendship with his son.”

Others were starting to arrive, so the Trio found a loveseat to share – with Harry in the middle of course.

“Please, pick a seat,” Palmer instructed, slowly getting back to himself.

“They aren’t letting anyone go to the reception area,” Ron noted, craning his neck to watch. Harry noticed that, too.

“Why, do you think?” Hermione frowned.

“Maybe they have a few things still left to take care of,” Harry shrugged. He kind of knew how his father felt when planning pranks, now. They had to make sure that everything went off perfectly.

Once the first wave filled the chairs around them with nervous chatter and curious musings, Harry noted that there were no more spaces left. And others were still waiting to find a seat.

“I wouldn’t worry about them,” he started violently when Tony spoke from behind them. The Italian walked around to sit in the chair directly in front of them. “You’ll see.”

“Okay,” Deeks got everyone’s attention. “Please sit as far back as you can. The sticking charms are now activating. Keep your arms and legs in at all times and thank you for flying Cresswell Airlines. Enjoy your flight.”

They had just enough time to register his words before their seat started vibrating as Harry found himself unable to move forward, his body from the waist down now stuck to the seat. Up ahead, the first chair started floating before it slowly started moving. The next one followed it and Harry tracked the journey as the chairs started turning back to fly overhead, the passengers alternately surprised, apprehensive and excited.

“Here we go,” Tony grinned back at them as both seat and chair started floating at the same time. Others had also started and soon the four of them were floating through the air, following the same trek as the others had.

“Good Merlin,” Hermione scooted as close to Harry as she could, while the boys enjoyed it.

Harry hadn’t been able to get on his broom, so this was incredible!

Wind whistled through his hair and into his ears as they moved over the crowd. They dropped low to round the Burrow and rose as they circled it before moving to the orchard. The movement wasn’t fast, but enough to make it interesting.

“Bloody hell!” Ron yelled, whooping as they did a smooth maneuver around the shed on their way back around the house.

Harry saw a line of other chairs behind them and more seemed to be on the way.

They entered the orchard and moved among the trees on what seemed to be a set path, in no danger of hitting anything even in their large seat. Tony sent off bubbles from in front, some flying into them.

When they reached the end of the orchard, they found an arch of leaves waiting for them to pass through. The arch expanded to accommodate them and they then found leaf designs showing off for their entertainment.

“Look,” Ron pointed. Harry followed his arm and laughed when he saw that one of the leaf designs had morphed into a Seeker riding his broom and chasing a Snitch.

“That’s Tony,” Hermione laughed close to his ear. No way it couldn’t be.

None of them knew how long it was, but they eventually flew out of the woods and coasted over the water, droplets forming their own designs and arches wove in and out of each other as chairs and their passengers flew in and out of them.

They flew over the field of tents and the wedding area – Bill and Fleur setting off small firecrackers at them as they waved cheerily up at them – and eventually had to land.

“Oh, Merlin,” Hermione wavered her way out of the landing area. “Tony, that was sweet.”

“No it wasn’t,” he wrinkled his nose. “I may not be having warm and fuzzy feelings toward Mrs. W right now, but I like the Weasley kids and Bill included. Mrs. Delacour doesn’t really do flying…”

“Tony!”

“What? No one has to know.”

Frankly, Harry was glad about it. Mrs. Delacour had also been grating on their nerves, too. Ron had almost done something – with the Twins’ blessing, no doubt -, but Mac had talked him out of it and Harry suddenly wondered if this had been in the works at the time.

“I still think it would’ve been better with what we had planned,” Ron told them, “but I guess we’ll have to make do.”

“Yup,” Tony winked. “Besides,” he faced the distance. “Storm clouds are gathering on the horizon.”

“Really?” they looked to see Deeks facing the house, shading his eyes. “I don’t see any.”

Tony whacked the back of his head and dragged him around.

“Oh, yeah. I see them,” he absently rubbed the point of contact.

Things were about to get interesting.

** *

Remus stumbled from his own chair with a delighted grin.

It made him think back to his Marauder days, about how they sometimes took midnight flights around the school.

“Blimey, was that brilliant,” Tonks caught herself before hitting the ground after tripping over her chair leg.

“It was,” he agreed. The full moon was next week, so he felt the familiar rush of energy as he stretched. Relaxing, he looked around and spied Tony looking off into the distance with a look on his face that had him chuckling. One thing that he’d learned around the Italian was that he couldn’t really help hamming things up for amusement effect, which was what the look on his face was. Mac, Palmer and Deeks stood on either side of him, sporting just as grim looks as they, too, stared off into the distance.

Padfoot was sat next to Palmer, in what passed for the same type of pose, even though Remus doubted he even knew what they were looking at.

They made a slightly ridiculous picture, as if posing for one wearing expressions more suited to a coming battle than an after-wedding reception.

Others noted the ‘funny Americans’, chuckling on the way to the stationary chairs and the promise of lunch.

“What are they looking at?” Tonks crossed her arms, hair Weasley red.

“I’m not sure I want to know,” he smirked, shaking his head as he passed the group staring off into the imagined distance.

He found the Trio at their table and greeted everyone.

“How did you like the ceremony?” Ginny wanted to know.

“It was up there,” he smiled gently at her, remembering James and Lily’s wedding.

Or what he remembered of it.

To this day, he was sure that Lily herself had had no clear memory of the day. They’d all gotten soused in order to calm everyone’s nerves.

“I’m still not sure if the decorations were a good idea,” she tweaked the centerpiece.

Glitter and confetti were everywhere, tables, floor, chairs – even people, thanks to the former flower basket who was now shaking glitter at everyone as it flew overhead -. The centerpieces had what looked like feathers… he thought.

“Mrs. Weasley wanted to combine French fashion and British likes,” Hermione shrugged.

As much of a Marauder that Remus wanted to believe he was, he certainly wasn’t going to touch that one.

“Well… it’s… fashionable,” Tonks winced, having come around at the end of that statement.

Gabby didn’t look impressed, either.

Tony and the group eventually tired of posing, so they wandered over as the last wave of chairs left the runway.

“How did you come up with the idea?” Remus had to ask Tony, watching more chairs come in for a landing.

“I got it from Booker’s place,” he shrugged, the Trio perking up at the mention of his old friend. “Her aunt’s house is so big,” he gestured, “that the only way we could see all of it – and the rest of the grounds – is by flight, but Booker has a thing about flying – or brooms, to be more accurate -, so her aunt came up with this idea to charm the sofa to fly all over so we could see everything.”

“That must have been cool,” Ron grinned.

“It is,” he agreed. “Of course, we’re now adults who can fly there by ourselves, but I thought it applied here, so we could show the French what charm this place had.”

They agreed on that and comments were made about the ceremony and the decorations.

“What’s with the shiny stuff, then?” Tonks leaned an elbow on Palmer’s shoulder.

“Do you really want to know?” Tony raised a brow at her.

“Sure.”

“Alright,” he stepped closer to whisper in her ear.

Remus looked up from talking with Ron and Harry just in time to see her hair turn white as her eyes saucered.

“Good Merlin,” she squeaked.

“Yeah,” Tony nodded, leaning away, face grim. “Just don’t let any of … _them_ … know, okay?”

“Oh, no,” she shook her head. “You can count on me. Not a _peep_ ,” she zipped her lips.

“It’s almost funny how she reminds me of Abby,” Deeks commented.

“Right?” Mac grinned.

“Who’s that?” Tonks let her hair go back to Weasley red.

“One of our co-workers,” Palmer nodded at Tony.

“Yeah, she’s something else,” he agreed.

“Well, I’m glad I remind you of one of your co-workers,” she grinned before something occurred to her. “That… _is_ good, right?”

Tony simply smiled at her and went to find Charlie once the other man landed with a few others.

“What did he say?” Ginny wanted to know once he left. “About the glitter?”

“Uh,” she looked nervously around. “It’s something from his friend’s fourteenth birthday party. I’d rather not say anything more.”

She dragged Palmer off to check in with Dumbledore, who had just returned from his second trip around the Burrow, and left the others to look at each other.

“Did he really say something like that?” the look on Mac’s face made Remus kind of suspicious as she shared grins with the Trio, Ginny and Gabby.

Deeks rocked back on his heels. “Seems like it.”

Deciding to keep out of the obvious mischief, Remus looked down at Sirius before laughing at Ron’s muttered, “D’you reckon she remembers that Palmer’s not part of the Order?”

It really wouldn’t surprise him at this point. The Auror got along famously with the curly-haired American.

AJ appeared not long after. “Mrs. Weasley said to tell you that lunch is going to be soon,” she announced.

“Is it,” Deeks grinned down at her.

She smiled back, obviously in on whatever was going on.

“Alright,” Remus took Sirius’ lead from Mac. “I think it’s time to go.”

“See you,” Harry waved.

** *

Lunch was delicious.

Remus grinned down at Sirius as his friend went to town on some dog-friendly soup. He vaguely wondered just how much soup the bowl held – because the bottom should have been seen by now – as he focused on his surroundings.

Other than the Americans relocating to the Trio’s table (“I have to talk about politics all day at work,” he’d heard Tony complain. “Sometimes I have to investigate politically induced crime scenes and don’t get me started on what Deeks has to go through.”), nothing exciting seemed to be happening and Remus would have felt disappointed if he didn’t think the Trio et al. were planning something.

Something was going to happen, he was sure. But when?

It was toward the end of lunch when it started.

Most of the young ones had been released with older kids following, their heads together.

That in itself wasn’t suspicious, they were all one family now, after all. But he caught sight of the Americans watching them run off, the others seated at the table suspiciously quiet.

He straightened, waiting with interest.

He thought it was soon, but he couldn’t be sure.

Minutes passed and nothing happened.

Disappointed, Remus sighed and slumped back in his chair. He’d been so sure –

A child’s scream echoed throughout the gathered crowd and everyone’s heads snapped in that direction.

“Who was it?” an anxious mother questioned.

“I don’t know!” another looked at her.

A second scream – sounding like it came from a different child – had the other Order members standing, wands out.

Remus, however, stayed seated, eyes slowly tracking to land on the looks Tony exchanged with his tablemates and, suddenly, he knew.

A large pop drew attention to a plume of smoke that was suddenly visible and several children shrieked from the trees. “FIRE!”

“Fire?” Mr. Weasley furrowed his brow.

Suddenly, a small whizzing sound drew Remus’ attention before what sounded like a small firecracker went off in front of him. Startled, he found himself staring at a thin line of smoke that was coming from –

Several more pops in the woods brought a wave of smoke pouring toward them as several more small firecrackers went off.

“Everyone calm!” Mrs. Weasley called out, sharp eyes taking in the scene as the guests started shifting uneasily. “There is nothing to –”

Some of the young girls suddenly streamed out of the smoke, shrieking as their hair looked to be on fire.

Remus let his eyes drop back down to the confetti and glitter strewn floor as several more of them exploded.

One of the French witches suddenly screamed as smoke started coming from the centerpiece on her table.

“Oh,” Mrs. Weasley looked like she was getting angry. Doubtless she spied the farce.

More firecrackers sounded as smoke started coming from centerpieces and the various bits of glitter and confetti.

“We’re under attack!” one of the British wizards roared, whipping his wand out.

At that moment, a balloon popped and shed even more smoking confetti.

It was chaotic now.

Several more children screamed. “We’re under attack!” they got up – dodging their parents as they tried to hold them – and ran as bubbles started dropping more confetti.

“Harry!” Remus looked over at them to witness another balloon pop, but this one – instead of glitter and confetti – rained small black marbles. Upon hitting the ground, the marbles started rolling and a few minutes later, smoke started emanating from them.

‘That’s not a WWW product,’ he mused, watching smoke quickly start obscuring his view. Screams and shouts interspersed with more small explosions originating in both the trees and elsewhere as bubbles and balloons continued to explode overhead, more black marbles raining from them and adding to the chaos.

“For heaven’s sake!” Mrs. Weasley immediately attempted to summon a marble, but Remus realized the problem and shouted a warning. It was too late.

As a marble flew toward her triumphant hand, two more flew to smash into it, resulting in smaller pieces that started smoking and rolling around.

“You can’t summon them!” he heard Charlie call out.

Mrs. Delacour sniffed and tried extinguishing the smoke, probably thinking that she could do it better, but more glitter and confetti shot out of her wand instead of the water she’d probably thought would come out.

“Sally!” a panicked voice cut through the chaos, smoke filling the area from all directions. “Chuck! Where are you?”

“The children!” another called.

“Are we under attack?” someone anxiously called.

Remus hid a smile as several of his fellows started forward – only to find themselves stuck to their spots. He had to hand it to the Americans. They certainly knew how to get attention.

It was eventually established that they could blow the smoke off and it took some doing before the smoke was thinned enough to see the next table, but it stubbornly refused to dissipate as more confetti and glitter came from the bubbles that seemed to have a never ending supply.

Once the area was as clear as it was going to get, it suddenly became clear that something was wrong.

“My children!” a French wizard exclaimed, bringing the others to the realization that _all_ of the children had disappeared amidst the panic.

Including the Trio.

And the Americans.

‘Very well-orchestrated,’ he gave the empty table a single nod, as the rest of the Order members caught on to the fact that Harry was gone.

“Are you sure it’s a prank?” Arthur frowned at the steaming Molly. “You, as well as I, know how an attack can take the shape of anything.”

“It most certainly was,” Remus paid them more attention than he did the smoke rolling back in, curiously concentrating more on the dance floor than anywhere else.

“We _are_ under attack!” someone exclaimed.

“Phyllis, hush.”

“But they kidnapped the children – ”

Remus caught sight of the now obscured dance floor and tilted his head. ‘What on earth – ’

Black marbles started rolling back out of their hiding places and started circling each other as the curtain of smoke started receding back from the high table as Arthur and Molly continued.

“But how do you _know_?”

“Arthur, the twins – ”

“ _Ladies and gentlemen_ ,” Remus blinked as Tony’s voice echoed over the growing panic of the guests and the attempts to calm them. “ _Guys and gals, allow me to welcome all of you to the Burrow. Are we having fun? No? Well, then, I’ll get right to it. You see_ ,” his disembodied voice continued rather casually. “ _Over the past couple of days, the experience you are about to have has been practiced to death, so please put your hands together for our first group!_ ”

Suddenly, he wasn’t so sure this was simply a prank.

The marbles circled around again, emitting thick smoke as [a haunting melody](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PiLKkwZdZtg) began to echo from an unknown source.

As the female vocalist sang the first words, four of the youngest Delacour girls danced out of the smoke in blue leotards with red ribbons tied around their waists and knotted on the left hip. Not too long after, five older girls danced out to join them.

Remus didn’t quite know much about ballet – he thought that’s what he was seeing -, but they looked wonderful in front of the smoky background as they leapt and twirled completely in sync to the singer’s lyrics and the song’s beat.

After the first verse, the smoke overtook the dancers twirling in place so that a group of yet older girls pranced out of the smoke to command attention.

Gabby and Lyric Weasley came out a few lines later, the dancers from before accompanying them so that all of them were dancing, jumping, twirling and doing the rest of their routine amidst the now thin grey smoke.

He took his gaze from them to glance around and smiled slightly as he found the crowd spellbound now that it was clear that it was some kind of performance instead of an attack.

The smoke and the dancers complemented the singer and the lyrics, with Gabby and Lyric doing the most complex moves in their spot at the center of all the dancers.

It was – to put it simply – magic.

And then, to cap it all off, when the singer finished, everyone stayed in their positions as the black marbles rolled back around to spread smoke as they wove around the dancers until the smoke was the only thing visible.

When the particularly impressive drum solo came along, the smoke suddenly thinned to grey before an unseen breeze appeared as the solo ended to sweep away the smoke and reveal the floor empty and the dancers gone.

** *

“I can’t believe we did it!” Ginny cheered from her spot in the trees.

“I can’t believe it, either,” Harry shook his head, joining in the roaring applause as Gabby and the girls disappeared from the floor.

It was a true spark of genius, what Tony did.

And the best part was that no one would scold them for the wonderful show put together so beautifully.

“The timing was _gold_!” Deeks crowed as Mac and Palmer cheered when the dancers came out of the smoke nearby.

Harry wasn’t sure how Tony did it, but they were cocooned in a smoke bank where no one could see them. He was sure, though, that people suspected something was going on in the trees.

The next group that went out were the girls that wanted to do the first show, but couldn’t be fit in anywhere. They were doing some French ballet while the next group readied for their song.

The French side seemed to have appreciated the dance more than the Brits, but all made the sufficient noise in approval.

Harry, Ron and Hermione went out with the rest of the Brits for [the song after that](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cn4yycn-ckA) , which they just had so much fun with.

Ginny and the twins took center stage with it and the others were there as background dancers.

After bopping along, doing the rehearsed jumping and (off-key) singing along among other things, the Trio returned to the ‘smoke cave’ and collapsed on the floor with Tony.

“That was incredible,” Palmer enthused, having watched them with the others.

“That was _fun_ ,” Ron grinned back, Harry and Hermione agreeing.

The youngest of the performers – British and French – got together to sing a British children’s song before then singing a French one.

Many coos were heard all over once they were finished and were then finally released to their parents.

Harry sighed in happy contentment as it meant that they were that much closer to being finished.

Sitting next to him, on Hermione’s other side, Tony got their attention.

“Trio,” he leaned forward, “meet me outside the tent when we’re done. I have to give your radios back.”

“Sure,” Ron answered for them.

Harry would be glad to get his back, that was for sure. It felt wrong without it.

The older performers – including Gabby – did a dance with one of the top WWN songs that they’d agreed on and half went to their families when it was over.

Gabby stayed and everyone went out to do [yet another song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Megg3FGB0WM), which was even more fun than the last one Harry joined in on. It was very easy to keep the beat with that one.

The Americans were all there, too.

Deeks and Tony joined the twins in hamming it up for the crowd, who, Harry spotted, was not unaffected by the song either. The kids they had released were jumping up and down as they also danced with the group, while a surprising number of adults bopped along with them, too. He spied Professor Dumbledore spinning Tonks around as they hopped along with the tune near their seats. Moony was clapping along as Padfoot let out a bark now and again, tail wagging to the beat.

Mac grabbed Harry’s hand and they twirled themselves around in between copying the movements that had been drilled into them over the past couple days.

Palmer and Ginny were doing the same thing not far from them and they looked to be having the time of their lives.

They all were.

After that song ended, however, time seemed to fly by after that.

Gabby led them in a French song, switching over to the triplets who had always wanted to lead what Deeks called a line-dance.

A few songs later, all the kids had been called back to join in one last song and the black marbles that Deeks had termed ‘smoke pellets’ made one last appearance to blanket the dancers from view. Then the smoke followed the dancers as Tony moved them back so that there was some room for the closing.

Lee Jordan reprised his announcer role as – in pairs and threes – the performers trooped out to circle the floor when he called their names to the wildly cheering crowd, all groups going out in alternating directions and pausing to bow in front of Bill and Fleur who cheered the loudest.

“What a day!” Hermione waited her turn.

“Yeah,” Palmer grinned down at her, “but our roles are not over yet. Remember, we have Gabby’s thing and the dance at night.”

None of them really knew what the blonde had planned, but Tony did and he wasn’t breathing a word to anyone.

AJ joined Gabby and Neville as the Trio went in the other direction.

Harry, Ron and Hermione waved at all the familiar faces, half waving back. Moony gave them a cheeky standing ovation as Padfoot waved a paw, the sparkle in his grey eyes telling of the immense enjoyment he’d had at the performance.

Mrs. Weasley hadn’t been pleased at the disruption, but she was swayed by the obvious enjoyment of the others and the only sign of her displeasure was the slightly pinched look on her face even as she clapped along with the others.

When Harry noted it to the others after getting back, Tony chuckled.

“Just tell her that it was a family project. I don’t see what her problem is, anyway.”

“Yeah,” Deeks frowned, agreeing. “I would’ve thought she’d be happy that both sides of the family are getting along.”

Shrugging it off, Tony, Mac and Palmer transfigured everyone’s clothes back to the ones they’d been wearing before the show started. It had been a given that everyone would wear different clothes to make dancing to the different songs that much easier.

The smoke was fully allowed to dissipate amidst the applause as everyone went back to their seats in their original clothes and hair styles.

“Well done, well done,” Dumbledore clapped enthusiastically. “An excellent performance masterminded by our very own Trio, aided by our American friends no doubt.”

They nodded, the kids not wanting the older friends to get in trouble with Mrs. Weasley. They could take the blame for it and not get in so much trouble.

“Yeah,” Ginny nodded, gamely wrapping an arm around Gabby’s shoulders – much to the blonde’s delight. “It’s so we can get to know each other better and start everything off right.”

“And I dare say you have,” Dumbledore agreed. “A more wonderful event I have yet to witness and it always seems to be the unexpected ones, doesn’t it? Another round of applause for our young friends!” he called, leading it.

And so, that part of the day ended with the true masterminds beaming at each other for a job well done.

** *

Remus leaned back in his chair, sipping at his punch as everyone who brought a change of clothes was welcome to change into them now that the wedding proper was over.

Many were staying the whole day – both family and friends on either side of the aisle -, so Molly was constantly running around to make sure everyone was enjoying their time.

It helped that everyone staying had taken a sick day at work – assuming they had to.

Everyone who couldn’t stay were coming back for dinner anyway, so it probably didn’t matter.

Tony had whisked the Trio off shortly after Dumbledore urged the new family members to get to know each other more than the tentative binds they had forged through the various activities since yesterday morning.

Remus hadn’t minded. He needed to relax as much as he could now that the full moon was close.

Sirius was under the table, gnawing on a ham bone that someone had given him – his guess was Deeks, but Mac was also a possibility -, so he didn’t need to do anything there.

Every once in awhile, though, someone – usually a young one or three – would want to try to pet him and Sirius would gamely endure the inevitable tail pulling with good grace until someone stopped them.

Remus chuckled and shook his head, looking out at the crowd still available. Many had temporarily relocated to tents or were off surveying areas of interest that had been spied on the chair flight.

Speaking of which, there were quite a few requests for another flight on the chairs and those who wanted to could wander on over to the area where about half of the original number had been set up for another round.

So far, the Headmaster was on his sixth go around on present count.

He had chalked it up to Dumbledore just being Dumbledore, until Deeks made a comment on that same thing.

Mac had shaken her head and pointed out the Ministry officials that wanted to get a hold of the man. ‘He’s trying to avoid them. I think there’s tension running between the Headmaster and the Ministry.’

Well, either was possible.

Remus was watching a few go up until the few dancers on the floor caught his eye.

Or rather, a particular pair.

After the new couple had their first dance – which should have happened before the performance, which was another mark Molly had against the Americans -, Fleur let Bill take her out for a few more dances since, but there seemed to be a clear preference for poor Detective Deeks who would always freeze up when she approached him.

And it hadn’t only been Fleur.

Several of her cousins had also asked for a dance – even the married ones.

He wondered if it was paranoia talking when he thought that there was something to it.

A bark drew his attention and he followed his old friend’s gaze to see the Trio joining the crowd again, Tony slipping off to find Palmer.

“Harry. Ron and Hermione,” he smiled warmly at them.

“Hey, Moony,” Harry dropped into the chair beside him, smiling down at Padfoot as he ruffled his fur.

“I rather enjoyed the show,” he told him as Ron and Hermione found seats on either side of them. “It was well done.”

“It’s not over yet,” Ron told him. “There’s two more things left.”

“Oh?” he raised a brow. “Anything I should be made aware of?”

“No,” they smiled at each other. “But Gabby’s going to do this thing she’s been apparently practicing for since she got here.”

“And Tony’s going to be helping her,” Hermione added, now changed into a nice top and jeans. “He’s going to play the piano.”

“I do remember something about that. I’m curious to know how good he is.”

“We are, too,” Harry agreed. “We can’t wait.”

After a while – long enough for Albus to have left again -, Hermione drifted off and some of the Weasley kids came over to sit with them. Others also came over and soon the predictable Quidditch conversation started, with Sirius intently listening from under the table.

Remus excused himself and started walking around, watching Fleur and Deeks take another spin around the floor. This time, however, Deeks was relaxed enough to strike up a conversation, resulting in a few laughs from both of them.

Remus ran into a few Order members and exchanged coded messages of various importance. Others just nodded at him.

He spent some time with his former students and even found himself leading Mac onto the floor.

“You dance wonderfully,” she smiled warmly as they swayed.

“As do you,” he smiled back.

They moved along with the others and he did end up enjoying himself. Mac did, too, from the smiles she gave him.

The glances over his shoulder went unnoticed, as did the sneaky smiles she directed at two of the people her eyes found there.

He smiled at Harry’s young friend AJ as she was twirled around by Charlie and chuckled as he and Mac passed Deeks and Fleur, the former giving him a pleading look for help.

“You know,” she moved closer to speak quietly in his ear. “If you’re worried that I’ll be making a move on you, don’t be. I have my eye on someone back home.”

That was rather nice to know.

“Thank you for telling me,” he smiled, sniffing the light magnolia scent coming from her. Possibly from her perfume, but it could also be her shampoo. “I won’t feel any regret for turning your advances down.”

“I won’t be disappointed.”

The song ended and she walked with him off the floor before being dragged into a conversation about legal things with two witches.

He was kind of impressed with how much she knew, for being a journalist.

He wandered on, exchanging pleasantries as Fleur made Deeks go back out for a spin, and even having a strange conversation with Tonks concerning flowers.

Well…

He _thought_ they’d been talking about flowers, anyway.

He stopped a table away from Hermione, who was giggling with Ginny, AJ, the triplets and Gabby. It was just close enough to hear their conversation and he decided to relax a bit where he was, so he scooted a chair back from the empty table and was just about to sit when he revealed a familiar pair of shoes sticking out from under the table now that the table cloth had been disturbed.

“Tony?” he bent down to see him with a laugh. “What are you –“

*** *

“Moony?” Hermione turned around, certain she’d heard his voice, but saw nothing but an empty chair half pulled out.

“What about him?” Ginny blinked, thrown out of her thoughts, and turned to her.

She frowned as she turned back, shaking her head. “Must have been nothing. Sorry, er, Wynter?” she smiled at the triplet. “Go on with your story.”

The Ravenclaw shrugged and continued about her cousin’s antics, none of them paying much attention to AJ, who was sat directly across from Hermione and could see over her shoulder, as she blinked, frowned and leaned to the side to try looking under the table. She couldn’t though, since the other girls were sitting there and the cloth obscured her vision.

“Did you lose something, AJ?” Hufflepuff Benson tilted her head.

“Um, no… I don’t think so.”

After Wynter’s story, talk turned to other things, allowing Hermione to let her brown eyes roam the half-filled area and soon found herself watching Deeks and Fleur dancing again.

“Gabby,” she leaned her chin on her hand as she glanced at her sister-in-law. “Is there some reason that your family seems fascinated with Deeks?”

She followed her gaze and smiled slightly. “Monsieur Deeks reminds zem of a cousin from before I was born,” she sighed wistfully. “I ‘ave not met ‘im, mais, I ‘ear stories from time to time. Deeks is ze right age when our cousin died.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Ginny patted her arm. “I hate hearing that one of my family is gone, too.”

The triplets also expressed their sympathies and Hermione squeezed the blonde’s hand before looking at AJ. She _was_ the only orphan at the table, after all.

The brunette, however, seemed intent to stare over the older girl’s shoulder with a frown, brow furrowed as she concentrated on the empty table. There didn’t seem to be any indication that she’d heard.

She turned to look at what she found so interesting, but she found the Headmaster coming toward them instead. “Oh, Professor!” she smiled as the others – except AJ – turned to look

“Ms. Granger, ladies,” he smiled warmly at her. “Would you have seen Remus, by chance?”

“Well, I thought he was here not that long ago, but I must have heard someone that sounded like him.”

“There is always the chance to be mistaken in a crowd like this,” he agreed with a chuckle.

“How did you like the service, sir?” one of the triplets wanted to know.

“One of the best in recent memory. And I have been to many. I find it is always a pleasure to partake in a friend’s celebration.”

AJ was about to open her mouth when a joyous voice called a greeting.

“Albus Dumbledore! You scoundrel!”

Dumbledore and the girls turned to see an older gentleman almost skipping toward them. He didn’t look older than Mr. Weasley as his bowler hat was set at a jaunty angle and his walking stick tip-tapping along beside him. His merry blue eyes danced over the group with his short brown hair already thinning.

Hermione glanced to see a smile light up the Headmaster’s face.

“Derek McIntosh! You rascal!”

They laughed as they embraced like old friends, making Hermione smile.

There was general chatter before they remembered the girls and the Headmaster turned to them.

“Derek, allow me to introduce some of my students; Hermione Granger, the triplets: Summer, Autumn and Wynter Benson – which one is which is anyone’s guess -, AJ Johnson, and finally,” he moved to put a hand on the shoulders of “Ginny Weasley and Gabby Delacour. The sisters of the bride and groom.”

“And a lovely ceremony it was,” Mr. McIntosh gave them all a bow. “My regards to Arthur and the new pair.”

“Derek is a consultant with the Ministry,” Dumbledore explained, beaming. “He is also a consultant to the Irish Ministry and – on occasion – the American Agency of Magic. He does have a lovely vacation house in America, though he will never tell where.”

“Yes, so I will not have nosy Headmasters breaking down my door at all hours of the night,” Mr. McIntosh grumbled, though his eyes sparkled with amusement. “Merlin knows, I get enough of that from everyone else.”

Hermione watched them banter and smiled as she thought of Tony’s interaction with Sherlock. Oh, the Headmaster and his friend weren’t related, but they did have a history and that was what she recognized most.

Especially since it was that exact history that the Trio had been privy to all week with Tony, Mac and Palmer.

“Hermione!” she turned to watch Ron and Harry lead a familiar face toward them and she grinned.

“Vince!” she hurried toward them, not minding the eyes that watched her nor noticing that AJ followed.

Vince Muldoon smiled warmly as she wrapped him in a one-armed hug, gently patting her back in response. He was their Housemate in their Year and he’d invited them to his house during spring break. She, Harry and AJ – along with ‘Agent’ – had very much enjoyed their stay and had gotten to know Vince a little more since then.

“You looked really nice up there,” he told her as they grouped on the other side of the empty table from the Headmaster. “Hey, Ginny.”

“Hi, Vince,” she smiled back. “Good to see you made it.”

“Sorry I had to leave directly afterwards,” he told them, “but Mum had to do a quick stop for a present before dinner. Ron, your Mum said it was alright.”

The other nodded and shrugged. “It’s before nightfall, so that should be alright.”

Hermione remembered the snowflake she and Tony had bought over the summer while out with Sherlock. It was back at the tent and she needed to wrap it. That led her to remember something else.

While they had stayed with Vince, Agent had dug up a box with a pendant inside. Having kept the pendant, Hermione hadn’t been sure what to do with the box it had come in and now she could just give it to Mrs. Muldoon. Er, Collie. Well, her real name was Colette Muldoon.

“And you must be Mr. Potter.”

Hermione started slightly, having forgotten about the Headmaster’s friend. “Oh, um, Harry, Ron,” she gestured to the group. “This is Mr. McIntosh. He’s a friend of the Headmaster.”

“Well, now,” the wizard chuckled. “I’m not sure it would be correct to call him ‘friend’. But, it is close enough, I suppose. Ah. A pleasure, sir,” he extended a hand to Harry, who smiled slightly and took it.

Derek McIntosh appeared to be as harmless as someone’s doting uncle, shaking Harry’s hand firmly. He also extended that same hand to Ron, then Vince. He was friendly and didn’t linger long, before absently bending down to scratch his ankle and making his pant leg ride up while doing so.

Be that as it may, it didn’t stop an odd, cold shiver from running down Hermione’s spine when he had clasped first Harry’s hand, then Ron’s. She was suddenly glad that he hadn’t touched her, because she suddenly didn’t want him to.

“What the bloody hell was that?” Ron hissed in her ear, having no doubt felt it, too, since he’d hesitated for a fraction of a second before clasping the older male’s hand.

“I don’t know,” she shook her head at him, catching Harry’s shiver before their eyes caught. He’d felt it, too.

Whatever ‘it’ had been, a coldness was left in its wake and she caught herself hunching into herself for warmth.

“Well,” McIntosh suddenly clapped his hands. “Time for me to take my leave, I’m afraid. Albus, if you wouldn’t mind seeing me out? There’s some business I need to make you aware of.”

“Of course.”

The now combined group of Hufflepuffs, single Ravenclaw and Gryffindors watched as the pair left, slowly ambling off toward the Burrow to use the Floo since apparition had been disabled.

“That was odd,” Harry stepped closer to her and Ron, both agreeing wholeheartedly.

She hadn’t been sure what that had been about, but she huddled closer to feel the boys next to her and sighed slightly as she felt their warmth.

The three of them would have looked odd if anyone had been paying them any attention – seeing them huddle for warmth when it was hot outside, as if it were the middle of September and going into October instead of July -, but no one did.

In fact, any attention paid in their general direction was aimed at the brunette crouched down by them and looking thoughtfully under the tablecloth.

Hermione vaguely heard AJ ask something as she absently looked for Tony, but blinked when she heard his voice almost right next to her.

“What are you doing under there, Professor?”

“Do I need a reason to be under here? Why can’t I just be under here because I want to? And cut it out with the Professor stuff.”

“Tony?” Hermione looked beside her to see AJ peering under the table. Glancing at Ron and Harry, they crouched down next to AJ to see Tony and Remus sitting cross legged on the grass under the table.

“Oh,” the Italian smiled at them from Remus’ other side. “Hey. Fancy meeting you here,” they had a few empty plates in front of them, though Hermione wondered why they decided to eat under the table instead of at it. “Want some chocolate?” he offered from a napkin. “As it turns out, Moony here doesn’t exactly get on with coconut.”

“I never liked it,” the Wolf shrugged nonchalantly.

The Trio looked at each other.

Maybe it was some sort of thing Tony did at weddings when he had to eat at least one meal under a table.

Hermione tilted her head thoughtfully. Maybe they needed to do so, as well?

Ginny suddenly appeared on Tony’s other side. “Hey, Moony, Tonks is looking for you.”

“Alright, then,” he nodded, everyone moving aside as he and Tony picked up the trash and vacated the space to climb out.

“That was enlightening,” Tony handed his load off to Gabby when she reached for it, using his freed hands to stretch his back with a groan. Moony took his own trash with him as the Trio moved closer to him and Vince was formally introduced to the girls, reconnecting with AJ and Ginny.

“Did you feel that?” Harry wanted to know. “Or was it just us?”

“Oh, did I,” he shuddered in remembrance. “He just shook your hands, right? Good grief, it suddenly got cold.”

“Would you have any idea why?” Hermione frowned.

“Not a one,” he shook his head. “Maybe it’s because he’s slightly older than Dumbledore is, though I will say that his tattoo is rather… shall we say risqué… for a guy who was born a short number of years after American Independence was established and it works surprisingly well on him besides.”

“He has a tattoo?” Ron skeptically eyed him.

“On his ankle. Didn’t catch more than a glimpse of ink, though.”

Hermione didn’t know much about American history, but – “Wasn’t American Independence reached before the 1800s?”

“Yup,” Tony nodded.

“And you seemed rather confident about Mr. McIntosh’s age…”

“Only because I know it from Dumbledore,” he shrugged. “He told me a lot of information when I was suspected of being a serial killer.”

Last year, he’d been framed for several murders that were still being investigated and he’d ended up at Hogwarts. There had been many a time the Trio had caught the Headmaster in the Common Room putting ‘Agent’ to sleep while telling him tales that would have put others to sleep, too, but it seemed now that some information had stuck.

“He doesn’t look older than Dumbledore,” Harry looked uncertain.

“Well, neither is anywhere near as old as Flamel was when he went, which is kind of funny since Dumbledore is determined to make people think he’s older than Merlin. He’s not,” Tony hastily assured, a grin lighting his features with amusement.

“How do you know?”

“Because you would have heard of him being Headmaster _long_ before now.”

“Well, he could have decided to wait to be teacher,” Hermione defended. Even she knew that teachers did not always plan to be teachers before they reached that point in their lives.

“And,” Tony had to deadpan, “you would have heard of him being Minister of Magic long before that.”

“For the last time,” she had to laugh, “he’s not interested in being Minister!”

“Who’s not interested in being Minister?” they turned to see Mac just coming to a stop next to them, warm chocolate brown eyes glancing curiously between them.

“Dumbledore,” Tony told her.

“I’m not sure he’d be interested, either,” she chuckled, leaning a hand on the table top next to them. “I just saw him and another man duck into the orchard as some of his… rather enthusiastic followers were in danger of spotting him.”

They snickered at that, before Mac was introduced to Vince.

A few minutes later, Hermione decided to give the box back to the other Gryffindor and led him, Harry and Ron back to the tent as the younger girls went off to try their hand at a dance that some of the other girls their age were attempting to do.

That left Tony and Mac to watch the dancers.

“It’s interesting how Deeks has managed to fit in with the French crowd,” she mused, eyes tracking them thoughtfully.

“Evidently, he reminds them of a lost relative,” Tony shrugged, smiling at her glance. “What? You thought I was under that table because I have this wedding thing that says I have to eat under tables?”

“You eavesdropper!” she pushed his arm with a knowing smile.

“Uh-huh, riiight,” he smirked back. “What exactly did you say to her, anyway?” Tony nodded at Tonks as she made a more successful attempt at talking with Remus.

“Nothing,” Mac denied. “Although,” her smile was more coy, “I might have… _insinuated_ a few things. Indirectly, of course.”

“Of course,” he grinned back, glad that he’d talked to Mac regarding this little issue after hearing the twins talking with Ginny about another possible attempt at matchmaking.

With the way his luck was running, however, they would probably have ended up trapping Palmer in a broom closet and that was something no one wanted to experience.

That _or_ the fallout.

** *


	19. Sunset Finale

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One last bit of fun before things change. 
> 
> Also, we will most likely have to put one of our cats to sleep, so I thought I would have one last thing before things get sad and depressing. I wrote this a couple years back, but I think I'll dedicate the first part of this chapter to her. It seems right to, I think.
> 
> And I know that a lot of pets have to go, but we all just need to remember that we are not alone and that others have gone through the same thing. It's just hard to sometimes.
> 
> I hope you all find more cheer with this than I have right now.

Eventually, the sun had to start sinking into the horizon and the day had to start drawing to a close.

Harry was sorry to see another incredible day start to pass.

But, on the other hand, he wasn’t as the sunset grew closer. He was just as curious as everyone else was about what Tony and Gabby were planning to do.

“It should be good,” Hermione mused, they, Ron, Palmer, Deeks and Mac regrouping in the sitting area of the tent before heading back to the after-wedding area for some ‘sunset company’ (“Meaning?” Deeks frowned. “Friendship and entertainment,” Mac explained.)  and dinner. “Gabby’s from Beauxbatons.”

“I know they’re incredibly talented,” Palmer piped up. He was lounging in an armchair with some stray faery lights floating around his glasses. They’d managed to find a way inside and danced near the ceiling with some of the floating lights that Mac had put up earlier. “But if Tony’s got something to do with it, it’s going to be even more special.”

“I don’t remember the last time I heard him play either the piano or his guitar,” Mac sighed wistfully. “He’s so good on each.”

“We’ve never heard him play,” Ron told her.

“You’re in for a treat,” Palmer assured them with a grin.

“Speaking of,” Deeks looked around, his blond curls moving slightly with his head. “Where _is_ Tony?”

The Trio shrugged at him.

None of them had seen him for over an hour and a half, but they thought that he was just getting ready with Gabby or helping to set up the concert by the Weird Sisters that would take place just after dinner. So, none of them could be sure.

They were on their way twenty minutes later, joining the last of the crowd as the sun slowly readied to touch the horizon.

Harry breathed in deeply, watching the colors of the sky turn from light blue to gold as he settled back into the seat he’d been assigned.

It was enough to forget the fear that Harry and his friends might be separated after graduation, that Tony would be right and the Order would find a way to keep the Trio from him; the fear of going back to his Aunt’s house without the blood protection wards – and going back _period_ -; the fear that their situation would be found despite their best efforts…

All of it was forgotten for a little bit as he watched the golden horizon slowly turn red and orange before the colors started gentling into soft yellows, pinks and a dash of purple. The faery lights were now free to float around the clearing and Harry reached a lazy hand to capture one briefly before letting it rejoin its mates, the light seeming to nuzzle into his hand for a moment before going off.

Beside him, Ron was talking with his sister about what Gabby could possibly be doing.

“I think we’re about to find out,” Palmer gained their attention when he reached for the middle where a handful of fliers suddenly appeared.

“They’re programs,” Deeks picked one up, letting Harry and Ron have a look.

They were small bits of cardstock, but the writing on them drew Harry’s eye.

The calligraphy explained that it was the listing of songs for the wedding dinner of Fleur and Bill Weasley. There were four and one of them was ‘Soloist’s Choice’.

“They’re playing songs,” R. Benson fingered her copy.

“Figures,” Mac chuckled as she glanced over it. “Tony’s been on a ‘Spirited Away’ run for a while now. I’m not at all surprised Waltz of Chihiro is going to be playing.”

“That’s a movie,” Palmer explained. “A very _good_ movie.”

“It was alright,” Deeks shrugged. “We had to watch it for a teambuilding exercise. Callen liked it, though.”

“How can you tell?” Harry tilted his head. His first impression of the man was not one who was so easily free with his emotions. Or – now that he thought of it – of one who let people see what he didn’t necessarily want them to.

Like Tony.

Deeks just snickered, not giving him an answer.

It was just as well, since Harry spied Tony walking toward the filled area. Gabby was dressed in her school uniform, arm twined with his, and seemed nervous. Tony had his head bent down and seemed to be whispering something into her ear. He was dressed in a different suit, a black one with a dark blue undershirt.

“Look,” AJ pointed toward the high table. Off to the left of it, a piano had appeared with its lid closed and a violin case on top. A lone stool stood in front of the couple’s seats, well within sight of the piano. “Seems like everything’s about to start.”

The crowd watched, falling into silence, as Tony escorted a still nervous Gabby toward the stool as the sun left a band of colors in the sky. Once in front of Bill and Fleur, Tony moved Gabby so that both were looking out at the crowd.

“Good evening, ladies and gentlemen,” Tony used the speaker spell to reach even the most hard of hearing guest. “If Gabby and I could have your attention, I do realize that dinner is soon to be served, but I thought it perfect timing for our little performance. I beg your patience, friends, so that you will rightly enjoy what we have worked so hard to achieve. Gabby is a very talented violinist and she insisted to perform for her dear older sister. In fact, I do believe that she will astound all of us with her grasp of songs well within her skill level and I speak for both her and myself when I say, ‘please enjoy the performance.’” He gave a low bow to the scattered applause before turning to Gabby, who seemed much too embarrassed.

“Uh-oh,” G. Benson winced.

“What ‘uh-oh’?” her Hufflepuff sister wanted to know.

“I heard some of the French girls saying that Gabby wanted to play a song for Fleur,” she explained to the table, “but they all said that she was too young to play one that I think is too complicated. So, some of the older family members talked her into playing simple ones.”

“Is there any such thing as a simple song for violin?” R. Benson leaned her head on a hand. “All complicated to me.”

Ginny shushed them as Tony left Gabby to settle on her stool and went to the piano to retrieve the violin. He gave it to Gabby and turned back to the piano with a flourish, allowing Tony to give Harry and the others a big smile and a wink as he did so.

“Show off,” Mac said fondly.

“But he does make it better,” Palmer pointed out, settling back in his chair for the music to start.

All were silent as Gabby set her gaze on Tony, who made sure to look back at her in order to keep her from freaking out and running.

Then, after making sure that Gabby kept her eyes on him, Tony began to play.

It was a beautiful piece.

Tony’s confident smile at Gabby seemed to make her confident, as well, making her come in after a few notes with an elegant twirl of her bow.

It was some sort of French song that Harry couldn’t pronounce, but it was light and he didn’t have to know anything about music to appreciate it. It wasn’t until Mac suddenly leaned forward with a grin that Harry realized –

“Simple, my foot,” she grinned wider as Harry caught on.

There was no way this wasn’t complicated, with Tony playing notes and cues for Gabby, who met each cue with precise timing that only a born violinist could do. One who practiced for hours on end, yet made it seem like the timing was only on her whims. And there was no way that someone under Gabby’s level could do this particular song with as much flair as she did.

The song ended with applause on the Britain – and American – side, Harry frowning as he saw many on the French side staring silently as others talked to their neighbor.

“Not very friendly, are they?” Ron scowled at them, pride injured on Gabby’s behalf.

“She did wonderfully,” Hermione frowned, too, but couldn’t say another word as yet another song – [this one](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eseUPz6JY9o) sounding an awfully lot like a song that a couple could dance to – started.

It was yet another beautiful song, filling Harry with a feeling that he would later be hard pressed to describe. It was something that felt like nostalgia, but also a sort of longing – for what, he couldn’t imagine -, and also wistfulness and something that felt like hope for bright days ahead.

He couldn’t untangle the feelings that went on inside, so he just stopped trying, listening as Tony did his solo bits with awe filling him - and adding to the confusion - at the notes coaxed out by the Italian.

They played the way a duet should play, backing off to give the other the spotlight for that moment before gently easing the attention off and the song to a close.

A lot of tears were wiped away as the pair stood to bow and applause greeted them from everyone.

“That was Waltz of Chihiro,” Palmer explained, clapping harder than the others.

“Doesn’t that just give you chills?” Ravenclaw beamed.

The others had similar feelings and chattered for a moment before the duo re-settled.

“Time for Soloist’s Choice,” Ginny told them.

“It’s sure to be good,” Hermione sighed with a happy smile.

Harry watched Tony start the song, but was drawn to the incredulous looks that Fleur gave her sister when the younger blonde jumped in with a cheeky echo of the notes Tony had just played.

It did little to keep him from noticing subtle cringes or those ready to cringe at the first uneven note out of place.

“What in Merlin’s name is that about?” Ron noticed it, too, and exchanged a look with him.

“Dunno. It looks like they’re waiting for her to mess up…”

“They kind of are,” AJ leaned in as the song really started to get going. “Some of the younger girls over there,” she nodded in the French witches’ directions, “said that Gabby wanted to play a complicated song – I’m guessing this is the one, then -, but Madam Maxime said that Gabby wasn’t good enough to play this kind of song. She wasn’t old enough.”

“But she has the skills and the talent,” Hermione was listening in to the conversation. “She’s done beautifully so far. I mean, I always thought that a school like Beauxbatons would encourage a student if she really wants to play something outside of her level. As a matter of fact,” she frowned, “I would have expected them to make her play regardless _because_ of its complexity.”

The four listened to Tony play an exceptionally beautiful part before AJ shook her head.

“They really don’t make sense over there,” she huffed. “Why keep Gabby from doing what she wants?”

Harry knew that he and his other two friends were going to corner the blonde when they finished, but shrugged in the meantime. “Who knows. Maybe they thought that she would embarrass them in front of a lot of people.”

“She seems a bit of a performance perfectionist to me,” Hermione had to smile. “I don’t think she would allow herself to embarrass anyone.”

“Yeah,” he sighed, turning back to the song.

The more the pair played, the more complex they got, notes sweeping in and around each other, and Harry vaguely pictured snowflakes in the air at one point, playing with the other while at the mercy of the wind.

It was to a silent crowd that they finished the song. Seconds after the last note drifted into obscurity, Harry and everyone at his table – as well as his other friends and their families scattered throughout the crowd – began to clap and cheer, the Trio even giving a standing ovation.

“That was brilliant!” Ginny cheered.

“It was,” Harry nodded, sneaking a look to see impressed, incredulous looks on Gabby’s family and … actually, he wasn’t sure she brought any friends with her…

He turned back to see Fleur actually hop the table to almost tackle Gabby off the stool with tears running down her face.

“It may just be me here,” Deeks watched with the confusion mirrored on half the tables faces, “but that… was sort of extreme, wasn’t it? For a solo?”

There had been times where Tony had fallen silent to let Gabby take the lead as soloist – and she did wonderfully -, but … Harry couldn’t help thinking that there was some sort of context they were missing.

Before anything else could be said, Dumbledore stood from his seat on Mr. Weasley’s other side and called for silence.

“Now,” he smiled widely, Harry’s sharp eyes spying what looked like tears in the Headmaster’s. “I do believe that we have one more song left of tonight before dinner. Mr. DiNozzo, Ms. Delacour. Please. I am interested to hear your final song.”

It took some minutes for Fleur to disengage and return to her seat as everyone settled down to listen as Tony started the [last song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODei5bAss6Y) of the small performance.

It was really very sweet and it was even more impressive as Gabby’s clothes and hair slowly changed from her uniform to the dress she wore at the wedding. She then took on Ginny’s outfit and hair, before then Hermione’s and Fleur’s. Then, it morphed from Fleur’s wedding dress to a new outfit with a poufy skirt that fell to her knees while her hair stayed the same and the song finished when the transformation was complete.

** **

“That was brilliant!” Ron came up to them after the applause had died down and others had gone back to their seats for dinner.

“The last song was so pretty,” Ginny gushed, beaming at the flushed Gabby.

Tony leaned lightly against the piano with crossed arms. “Yeah, well… Gabby wanted to play that song and I couldn’t resist showing off after that. Hence, the performance.”

“You were fantastic,” Hermione hugged the Italian tight. “You really play the piano well.”

Harry agreed. “But how did you put it together?” he wanted to know. “I mean, you didn’t have that long to practice.”

“Well,” he ducked his head. “Hetty let me borrow this device that slows time down and I used it with Gabby when Sherlock was here. We went over the songs and she’s been practicing for tonight ever since.”

Ron nodded. There were such devices out there.

Gabby turned to see her sister and they spent a few moments going on in French, hugging and crying.

“Wonderful as always,” Ron turned back to see Mac squeeze Tony’s arm.

Deeks nodded. “Yeah. I haven’t been to many piano or violin concerts to say for sure, but it was good.”

“I always like to hear you play,” Palmer told him.

A few minutes later, the triplets went to hang out with their family and all but AJ dispersed for their own reasons.

Tony, AJ, Hermione, Harry and Ron were talking when Gabby and Fleur finally joined them.

“Zat was incredible, no?” Fleur beamed proudly at her little sister, who was still glued to her side.

“Hey, Fleur,” Tony frowned. “After that one song, why did I start getting some odd vibes from the crowd?”

“Ah,” she turned to their questioning eyes. “You see, ze song Gabby played… it is for very skilled players – which my sister clearly is! – and it is not somezing zat would usually be played outside of a … opera? Some place similar. I am glad Madam Maxime didn’t discourage Gabby.”

“I almost was,” she revealed, “but Tony said to play anyway.”

“Well, sure,” he shrugged when they all turned to him. “Why not? This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, so why not go out with a bang? How many other times will the spotlight come out and shine on someone so talented, who no one thought would have the guts to do it?”

“That’s for sure,” AJ beamed. “Tonight was special, wasn’t it?”

“Eet iz not over yet, AJ,” Gabby shook her head.

“No giving secrets out before dessert,” Tony admonished, turning to see food start to appear. “Speaking of which, playing for a crowd gives me an appetite,” he promptly left to dive into his chair, the others watching with grins as Ron and Deeks followed.

Harry smiled at the French sisters as they went back to their own little world and Palmer and the girls followed him back to the table.

It was a wonderful dinner, made all the better with the friends all around him.

Mac could surprisingly keep up with Tony, Ron and Deeks bite for bite. Ginny was actually sort of impressed.

“She’s a Marine,” Palmer half joked. “That means she’ll eat anything.”

“What’s a Marine?” AJ wanted to know.

That led to an interesting – and enlightening – conversation where Tony, Palmer, Mac and Deeks explained the branches of the Muggle Armed Forces in America.

“How in Merlin’s name do you keep track of them all?” Hermione was impressed. Harry knew they all had similar looks.

“Easy,” Tony lifted a shoulder as he shoveled potatoes into his mouth. “Work for one branch of the military and you start to understand the rest.”

Harry was going to take his word for it.

The sky darkened around them and it was eventually time for the Weird Sisters to begin their concert.

The dance floor grew and a few of the tables shifted to make room for the stage already set up.

“Isn’t this exciting?” one of the triplets beamed. “They’re one of my favorite groups!”

“Well,” Tony yawned. “I think it’s time to call it a night.”

“You are _not_ going to bed yet,” Hermione frowned.

“Yeah,” Ron agreed, “what about… the other thing?”

“I think you guys can handle it without me,” the Italian waved him off. “Plus, you have the other three to help.”

“Actually, I’m going to rest in the tent,” Mac stood with a stretch. “Deeks? Palmer? How about you?”

“That sounds good,” Palmer yawned. “Long day.”

Deeks looked at the long faces and shrugged. “Maybe I’ll stay up just a little bit.”

“Okay!” Ginny cheered, grabbing his arm and dragging him off, some of the others following behind them.

“I think he’ll regret that,” Tony snorted, levering himself up.

“But it’s too early,” Ron protested, Harry and Hermione following as they trailed Tony back to the tent.

“Maybe for you,” he shrugged.

They went inside the tent, Mac and Palmer having been waylaid by some of the guests, and the Trio frowned as Tony led them into the sitting area.

“Now that I have the three of you where I want you,” he rubbed his hands together, no trace of fatigue now. “Time to give your radios back.”

“You’re finished with them?” Harry perked up.

“Yup. Just tweaked them a bit,” he just swished his hand and the radios appeared in front of their respective owners. “I’ll let you find out what I did to them.”

Harry grinned as he stowed his in his pocket, patting it with relief. He hadn’t liked not having his radio with him and was glad it was back where it belonged.

Ron and Hermione were just as relieved and Tony had to laugh at their dreamy smiles.

“You guys are taking ‘never be unreachable’ to a whole new level, you know that?”

He showed them out and they made their way back to the concert that was just beginning. Deeks was still with Ginny and her gal friends from school, the American managing to win them over in short order.

“But would the last surprise of the night work without them?” Hermione frowned thoughtfully. “It’s not impossible, no, but it will be difficult and we would have our work cut out for us.”

Harry knew he and Ron were disappointed and a little panicked at the idea that the Americans wouldn’t be helping them even if it was their idea in the first place.

“But that’s going to have to wait,” Hermione shook her head. “We need to finish this first.”

With a sigh, the friends went their separate ways and joined the crowd as the band went into their newest song.

Harry wasn’t much for this kind of music, but he didn’t really mind it. Everyone else was having fun and Deeks was jumping around just as much as the others around him. Harry made his way to the drinks table and found AJ staring at the bowl of punch with a faraway look on her face.

“Having a good time, AJ?” he poured himself some punch and took a sip. It was kind of sweet.

“Uh huh,” she lifted a shoulder.

“Doesn’t seem like it to me,” he poked her.

“Well,” she shook her head. AJ opened her mouth to say something, but thought better of it and closed it again.

“What?” he coaxed. “You can tell me.”

Grey eyes studied him and she heaved a sigh. “Two First Years see something across the water,” she told him. “They follow it without telling anyone where they were going and they find what they were looking for. Ages later, they’re grown up and leading their own lives,” she frowned. “But it’s a marked life that one of them leads. And that makes him important somehow.”

Harry waited to hear more, but she seemed to be at a loss for words. “Anything else?”

“I don’t know. I just know that that boy is important,” she shook her head. “But I don’t know anything else about him.”

Harry studied her in turn and remembered that he, Tony and Ron had a suspicion that AJ was a Seer, and he couldn’t help wondering if this little story was part of that somehow. “Did you have a dream about these two?”

“Kind of?” she wasn’t sure. “But I saw him a little more clearly than the girl. It was odd. I think I’ve met the boy before.”

Harry shrugged. “Maybe you should think on it,” he suggested. “People are like that.”

She hummed. “Well, he’s important somehow, anyway. I don’t know how or why, but it really started with that rock shattering into millions of tiny bits.”

“What rock?”

“The rock the First Years found when they went looking for it,” she told him as if he were particularly dense.

“Oh, yeah, uh. Right.”

She wandered off a bit later – seemingly forgetting about what she’d said – and left Harry to his thoughts.

‘What in Merlin’s name was that about?’ he wondered. And what did First Years have to do with anything? Sometimes he wondered if she was a Seer or if she was going to be some sort of writer when she got older.

* **

A few songs later, Harry was still on the outskirts of the crowd as the time grew closer for their last performance of the night.

Not like he wasn’t the least bit confident of their abilities to do what they spent so much time perfecting, but he still worked under the belief that the Americans were going to be helping them and Deeks disappeared a little bit ago.

He’d run across Ron and Hermione a few times as they wandered in wait for the next song they liked or recognized – and oddly run into a few of the others who looked like they were doing the same thing in an identical fashion – and was again at the drinks table when he caught sight of Palmer fidgeting almost impatiently nearby.

“Palmer?” he went over to say hello. “What are you doing here? I thought you went to bed ages ago.”

“Well,” he shrugged. “We did. But then we got up again.”

Harry – after knowing Sirius and the Weasley twins – suddenly got a feeling and a close inspection of the other Wizard’s face – which was lit up like Moony’s when trying to keep a lid on something – revealed a startling discovery.

“You lot never went to bed at all!” he scowled. “Why didn’t you just say – ”

“But that wouldn’t be very fun at all, would it?” Palmer nodded at the stage with a grin.

Harry frowned at him and turned to the stage just in time to see the lead singer take up her wand.

“Good evening!” her voice rang out to fill the clearing as smoke began filling the stage. “How’s everyone feeling?”

The crowd roared in response.

“That’s fantastic to hear! Now, how about we go into one of our old songs that we haven’t played in ages, yeah?” a bank of smoke seemed to hover in place around her, thickening over the instruments and their players. “I know, I know, what song could we possibly be talking about? Well, I have it on very good authority that there are two wicked Wizards who can play some instruments and I’d like to get them up here. They chose this particular song and they chose well. It’s not quite time for them to come up here, yet, so let’s give a warm welcome to one of our guest singers!”

Harry glanced at Palmer, who had yet to look away from the stage, and frowned before turning back to the stage just in time to see Mac stumble out of the smoke next to the lead singer like she’d been pushed.

“Mac?” Harry glanced back at Palmer and saw him laugh.

“I can’t believe Tony got her up there,” he wheezed, brushing a few tears from his eyes.

“I don’t understand,” Harry frowned, returning his gaze to see Mac right herself and realize that all eyes were on her. He could see her swallow nervously from where he stood.

The lead singer grinned and continued, “As I said, we have two Wizards on the guitar and the drums, so I’d thank you to give them your loudest applause when we’ve finished to make them feel welcome. So, shall we start?”

Mac sharply turned panicked brown eyes on the other Witch as the drums started up, the rest of the stage still under the cover of smoke.

Ron and Hermione moved out of the crowd to join Harry and Palmer as they watched Mac on stage.

“Palmer, I thought the four of you went to sleep,” Hermione frowned.

“Well, when Tony suggested this, we just couldn’t walk away,” Palmer grinned at her. “Besides, we wouldn’t let you finish the night without us.”

Harry sighed in relief at that, before giving a laugh. “You wanted us to think that we’d be on our own,” he accused.

“Well, yeah,” Palmer shrugged. “It was Tony’s idea. Frankly,” his tone turned serious as he turned serious eyes on them. “I can’t thank you enough for inviting us to this wedding.”

“Why wouldn’t we?” Ron frowned. “You’re our mates, too. Well, Deeks wasn’t at first, but I think he’s grown on me.”

“Well, mostly, I mean thanks for inviting Tony. I haven’t seen him have this much fun in too long,” Palmer’s gaze turned distant. “You know,” he smiled softly, “he really started smiling again after meeting the three of you. You’re good for him,” he turned the smile on them. “I can’t thank you enough for being his friends.”

“You’re welcome,” Hermione answered for the boys, beaming at the older Wizard. “To be honest, we should be thanking you, Mac and Deeks for being Tony’s friends, too, and watching out for him at NCIS.”

“Yeah,” his smile fell away as he sighed. “I kind of wish you three can work with Tony. Maybe you could get him to think about transferring out. Merlin, does that sound horrible coming from his co-worker, but I worry that maybe NCIS isn’t the place for him anymore. I think Mac’s beginning to cotton on, as well.”

The Trio glanced back to see Mac still frozen on the stage despite the coaxing beginning to come from the audience. The lead singer suggested that everyone help her out and everyone began singing along to the still smoke covered instrument players.

“We’ve been kind of worried that NCIS isn’t the place for him, either,” Ron had to agree.

“But Tony won’t quit,” Harry bitterly pointed out. Despite the fact that Tony wasn’t quite happy with work, even Harry knew that Tony thrived on this kind of occupation. It was in his blood.

“Stubbornly loyal to a fault,” Palmer nodded with a sigh. “But he’s not alone, is he?” he smiled slightly. “Not with us and Deeks and Mac and Peter and Sherlock and Eames to watch his back.”

“Along with Booker, Sparky and Pin,” Hermione added. “And a number of others.”

“Where _is_ Tony, anyway?” Harry frowned as Mac started gaining confidence up there and the crowd slowly stopped singing along.

“Well, you can certainly hear him,” Palmer shrugged.

The friends listened closely for their oldest friend’s voice, but could only really hear Mac as she really got into it and the instruments keeping perfect time with her.

They frowned at Palmer, who shrugged with a smile before leaving them to it.

“That was helpful,” Hermione huffed, putting hands on hips.

“Maybe we aren’t listening hard enough,” Ron suggested.

Well, it was hard to hear anything around here, let alone a lone voice.

The three eventually sat back and listened to Mac and the lead singer as they went through the song and the smoke eventually receded to cover only the drummer and one of the guitarists and Harry was bobbing along to the beat when the lead singer again took the center stage and the players quieted for her.

“Thanks for letting our friend here show her stuff, you lot!” she beamed, applause breaking out as the flustered Marine took a bow. “And for letting our other mates have a go at being band members for a day,” she gestured with an outstretched arm as the concealed guitarist went into a solo and Harry was impressed with the skill they displayed.

But what did he know about music?

A glance at Ron and Hermione’s faces showed their own admiration and he turned back to the stage just as the smoke cleared from the drumset.

“It’s Deeks!” Hermione laughed as the blond easily followed the only other player’s lead.

Harry didn’t know the American could play and clapped along with everyone else.

What was probably the biggest shock – though it really shouldn’t have been in hindsight – was when Tony leapt out of the smoke still on stage while continuing to play the guitar in complicated movements that sent out intricate notes to compliment Deeks’ playing.

“If that doesn’t beat all!” Ron laughed next to Harry as they and Hermione joined in the cheering.

When the song eventually came to a close, the Trio cornered Palmer and dragged him off to collect the other three, finding them still shaking with adrenalin as they talked over themselves to Dumbledore as the Headmaster watched them with fondness.

“That was brilliant!” Harry beamed.

“You were all wonderful up there,” Hermione hugged Mac tight.

“Yeah,” Ron shook Deeks’ hand.

“You three should’ve come up,” Tony grinned wide and manic, his green eyes still full of energy. “Give people something to talk about.”

“No thanks,” Harry flatly refused, making the others chuckle.

“Aw, c’mon,” Tony reached an arm around the teen’s shoulders to drag him tight against his side. “For old time’s sake.”

“What old time’s sake?” Palmer had to laugh. “While it does seem like the Trio have been around for years, we don’t actually have that much fun with them, you know.”

“Yeah, but Eames would’ve pushed them up. You know how he is.”

The red suddenly infusing Palmer’s cheeks told Harry that there was a story there. Mac’s sudden shark-like grin only confirmed it.

“Yes, Palmer,” she purred, moving to drape over him with Hermione still attached to her waist. “Why didn’t you all join us?”

“Uh, I can’t play remember? Or sing?” he inched away.

“Well, you certainly did both in the West Indies,” Tony’s smirk matched Mac’s as he and Harry boxed him in from behind.

“Is this a drunk Palmer kind of story?” Deeks chuckled as he and Ron moved closer.

“I am not certain if I should be hearing this,” Dumbledore’s amused comment reminded them that he was still there.

“Then shoo,” Tony waved a hand at him, eyes never leaving Palmer’s slightly panicked ones.

“Oh, you all should have seen him,” Mac chuckled. “Eames talked him into getting drunk at this place Eames knew.”

“Then we had to go get them since they were making a scene,” Tony continued.

“Can we not ever talk about this again?” Palmer pleaded.

“ **Not on your life** ,” they chorused with identical smiles.

Harry just shook his head.

The three of them were good friends, anyone could see, and things like this only cemented the fact.

“So,” Ron frowned at all of them. “That whole ‘going to bed’ thing was just to surprise us?”

“Nope,” Tony grinned. “Eames and Sherlock dared us that we couldn’t make Mac get up on a stage to sing. That’s actually what Palmer was doing, you know, taking pictures.”

“And they are going to eat their words,” Mac smiled gleefully.

Harry had to smile at them, all of them happy about the prospect of getting one over on the other two, even though only three of their number had ever met Eames in human form and all but Tony having never really spent much time with Sherlock.

Deeks caught his eye and smiled. “All that playing up there gets your throat a little dry.”

“Then let’s move this party over to the drinks,” Tony suggested.

“That, I think, is where I leave you,” Dumbledore hadn’t moved away from them, blue eyes watching them steadily.

“Okay,” Tony waved, dragging Harry and Palmer after him. “See you later.”

* **

When the band had taken a break, Tony had deemed it time for their last performance of the night.

Harry watched as he turned the lights off around the clearing and dimmed the lights on the table as everyone slowly quieted to curious murmurs when Tony stepped out in the middle of the dancefloor.

“Hello again,” he used the announcement spell again. “Just wanted to let you know that there is one final performance of the night. Gabby Delacour and Lyric Weasley will be performing to a song that requires a creative touch.”

With a wink, Tony waved a hand and Harry joined Ron, Hermione, Ginny, AJ, the triplets, Mac, Palmer, Deeks, Neville and a few assorted cousins of both families out by Tony. The older man handed them their sparkler sticks as Mac changed everyone’s clothes to black and they got in their assigned spots, shaped vaguely like a stretched out diamond.

Lyric and Gabby met them there and received their own sticks before waiting on the sidelines for their cue. Fred and George were in charge of the explosives (“Are we sure they won’t blow us all up?” Ravenclaw Benson watched them dubiously, but Tony assured them that the twins could be trusted. Harry wasn’t convinced.) and were currently off somewhere, no doubt gleefully rubbing their hands together in wait.

Tony took his place between Harry and Ron and everyone’s sparkler sticks lit up as [the song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BtI43kqkOI) came on.

First the pair of dancers came out on either side of the dance floor as sparkles started coming from their feet every time they touched the floor. Harry noticed their clothes – basic dancing dresses and leggings – began to show color starting to twirl around each other in intricate designs reminiscent of actual fireworks.

Harry and the others started swaying and moving their arms just like they practiced, their own clothes lighting up with the same swirls of colors as the ones on Gabby and Lyric.

It was so much fun!

It helped tremendously that the song was upbeat and easy to move to, the twins lighting off fireworks at the agreed upon intervals.

Watching everyone was fun in and of itself.

The group moved as much in unison as they could – which was surprisingly ninety nine percent of the time as Sirius and Remus would later gush -, Harry also watching the two girls twirl around them and between them in the spaces they left for them.

The audience was also getting into the song, having their own sparkler sticks somehow and waving them along – some, like Remus, even using their magic to have fun with them such as changing the colors and Harry thought he’d spied Dumbledore with his beard changing colors in time to the song, bopping along and gleefully waving four sticks around.

As the song progressed, the group started moving their legs, tapping sparkles on the floor like the two girls as the group started moving side to side and twirling around while also keeping their arms moving.

Fleur would later describe the effect as a rippling sea of light and would compare it to one of France’s beautiful holiday celebrations, where the authorities would light up the sky.

All Harry could really tell from his perspective was the laughter surrounding him as the fun got to the others.

It would become one of his most cherished memories: Gabby and Lyric moving past as Harry glanced at the others to see Tony’s happy grin lit up both from the inside and out as the sparkler sticks and the explosives lit up the area; Ron on Tony’s other side and Hermione on Harry’s; AJ, Mac and Palmer in front of them with Ginny, Neville and Deeks behind.

There was an energy that was surrounding them as they danced, moving their sparklers as they had been practicing and Harry didn’t bother to put a name to it.

He let himself enjoy the moment and the company as they moved in the summer night air, but – as all things did – it eventually ended with the song and they finished with their right hands on their hips with their left hands pointing up, small fireworks being set off around them as the larger ones ran wild over the crowd, shedding stars as they went.

A few of them lit the sky and everyone stared as others were sent up to join them in a spectacular display hidden from everyone else around by the wards put up for the wedding.

Harry laughed and clapped and oohed and ahh’d with everyone else and the applause and cheering lasted well after the last firework slowly faded.

“What a night!” Hermione beamed as Harry turned to her.

“It certainly is,” Mac turned with her own grin.

“A special one to be sure,” Palmer added, smiling bright.

But the night – and Tony – still had one last surprise.

* **


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Something for the Election Day blues. You can either read it for celebration or consolation, but I am almost done writing this out. I'm not sure how to feel about that.

Harry, Ron and Hermione wandered the back edges of the orchard as it neared midnight.

They recalled all their favorite moments of the day and night – all agreeing that the fireworks, the dancing and an incident not too long ago involving Remus, Tonks, Tony, Deeks, Palmer, Mac, Kingsley, Dumbledore, some glitter and dish soap ranking at the very top of their list - , gleefully laughing at other moments throughout the week, and reveled in the feeling of each other’s company.

Tony had been dragged off by Palmer after the Dish Soap Incident and Mac and Deeks had gone after them, telling the Trio they would meet up later, and hadn’t been seen since.

Not that Harry really minded. He was content with hanging out with Ron and Hermione, though the three would rather have Tony with them.

Harry heaved a sigh as they fell into a comfortable silence, allowing him to glance up at the night sky.

It was clear enough to have his breath taken away at the sight of so many stars, but it wasn’t as clear as it was at school. At Hogwarts, there were no invasive lights around for miles and he felt something settle when he thought about staring out the window next to his four poster bed.

“I wonder how long the good weather will last,” Hermione commented offhand. Ron and Harry shared a look with a long suffering sigh. Luckily, the sighs went over her head and Harry made a note to himself to ask Tony about it.

They were just lounging among the trees near the fence when Lyric Weasley called out to them.

Ron flagged her down and Harry and Hermione watched as their young cousin wandered into sight.

“What’s wrong?” Hermione wanted to know.

“I don’t really know,” Lyric shrugged. “But Aunt Molly wants you in the house.”

“Any idea why?” Ron frowned.

“No, but Ginny and Gabby weren’t at the party either.”

“Thanks,” Harry told her as they started to return to the main area of the orchard. “You go on ahead.”

Hermione waited until the other Witch got ahead before turning to the boys. “What do you think happened?”

“Maybe we should wait before panicking,” Harry pointed out. “I mean, we don’t really know what’s going on. It could be nothing.”

“Yeah, could,” Hermione frowned. “It doesn’t mean that it’s not something.”

They were within sight of the house when Lyric moved away and AJ took her place, moving next to Harry.

“AJ,” Hermione frowned at the younger girl. “Do you know what’s going on?”

She just looked at her with a shrug. “I have a very good suspicion.”

“Well, let’s have it then,” Ron told her, but Mac suddenly appeared before AJ could respond.

“Trio, AJ,” she looked grim as she stopped them. “I need to ask you one very important question, alright?”

“Of course,” Hermione nodded. “What is it?”

Mac looked them each in the eye and pursed her lips. “Do you trust us? Deeks, Palmer, Tony and myself? This is very important, so choose –”

“What the bloody hell is this about?” Ron wanted to know. “We don’t need to think about trusting you.”

“No, we don’t,” Harry agreed, seeing Hermione and AJ nod in solidarity. “We would trust you with our lives.”

“Just remember that later,” she smiled wryly. “Now, then,” she straightened with a look that Tony had named her ‘Court is in session’ look that only came out when she was being a JAG Lawyer. “Let us do the talking and do as we say the moment we say it. That means that if we tell you to hit the floor, do it as soon as the words die from our lips.”

“That’s kind of overreacting, isn’t it?” Hermione pointed out, but Mac just shook her head with a cryptic smile.

“You’ll see, if we’re right. And I have every reason to think we, in fact, are.”

She herded the four of them inside to the kitchen and Harry stopped for a moment to take the scene in from where he stood near the door.

In addition to AJ, Mac, Ron and Hermione, the living room before him also held several others.

The Benson triplets and their parents and grandparents stood near the front, the three sisters looking resigned in some manner, but not looking overly ashamed at whatever they were resigned about.

Vince Muldoon and his mother ‘Charlie’ stood with Hannah Abbot, Neville Longbottom, Ginny, Gabby, someone Harry vaguely recognized as Piper – AJ’s foster mother -, Dumbledore, Snape, McGonagall, Flitwick, Sprout, almost a dozen Order members, Lee Jordan, the rest of the Weasley clan who called the Burrow home, two or three others, assorted family members of the above and finally Palmer, Deeks and Tony.

Palmer and Deeks – well, mostly Deeks – were calm, but the blond had a smirk on his face as if he’d been waiting a long time for this (whatever it was) to happen.

Tony, on the other hand…

Later, the Trio would be amazed and in awe of how their friend could just hide his emotions like he did and make his expression unreadable.

Of course, they wouldn’t realize until much later that the glitter of emotion in his green eyes was the only warning and that Tony was actually _terrifying_ when he had half a mind to be.

“Ah, there you are,” Dumbledore looked over them and Harry was surprised to see the disappointment writ all over his face. “We have a serious matter to discuss.”

The tension was palpable on the Order’s side of the room, whereas confusion and resignation permeated the other side as Mac nudged the four toward Ginny and Gabby.

“So, Headmaster,” Mac stood tall beside them. “What purpose do you have for this meeting?”

“We have reason to believe that there is a security breach,” he answered gravely. “Alastair has confirmed the breach and identified it,” he gestured toward Moody, whose magical eye swiveled in its socket.

“And the nature of this breach?” Mac had apparently been chosen as the group spokesperson since no one else said a word.

Dumbledore heaved a heavy sigh. “My dear Sarah, I’m afraid that the security breach is in this room. All of them.”

Harry looked at Ron, only to see the same confusion reflected in his friend’s blue eyes. Hermione, on the other hand, didn’t seem to be in the dark on this as her face lit up in realization before her brown eyes darkened.

“You don’t mean _us_ ,” she balked.

“Unfortunately, Ms. Granger,” McGonagall also had a disappointed look on her face and it was evident in her tone, “it is the truth.”

“We expected better from all of you,” Mr. Weasley frowned disapprovingly.

“And how, exactly, are we this alleged security breach?” Mac asked before anyone else could open their mouths.

Harry was beginning to see understanding dawn on the faces of the rest of his friends and only felt even more confused.

“Empty your pockets,” Mrs. Weasley suddenly ordered, disappointment giving way to fury as her face became red. “All of you. Now.”

Harry felt AJ’s grip on his arm tighten as her foster mum came toward them.

“Alyssa,” she began, only to have the brunette shake her head furiously.

“Not Alyssa,” she told her. “My name is AJ.”

Harry couldn’t help the smile that crossed his face at that, remembering how she had initially hated the moniker, but now she apparently embraced it with possessiveness.

“AJ, then,” she smiled. “Would you please do as Molly says and cooperate with the Headmaster and his people? This is all a misunderstanding, I’m sure.”

Harry glanced around to see his friends looking at each other as their family members questioned them. Glancing at Mac, he saw a glitter in her eyes that he thought was amusement.

A scuffle and a shout drew his attention to the front of the room in time for Mrs. Weasley to step back from deciding Ginny was being too slow and searching for herself, a triumphant look on her face as she held a small black object for the room to see.

“Give that back!” Ginny yelled, Bill grabbing her before she lunged.

“Is that a… radio?” Hermione pointed slightly.

“Ronald,” Mrs. Weasley glanced at him before going for the twins, who crossed their arms and refused to do as told.

“Al – AJ,” Ms. Piper – was she married? – then turned a stern look at the brunette still holding onto Harry. “Do you have one of these devices?”

Harry looked down at her to see her glaring at the older Witch as she half hid behind him.

“So what if I do?” she returned.

“Give it to me,” Piper held a hand out.

“If you want it, you’ll have to get it yourself,” the brunette sniffed, not releasing Harry.

Harry turned to see some of his other friends sullenly reach into their pockets to extract the same device that was taken from Ginny, and glanced at his equally baffled best friends.

“Not a word,” Mac reminded from the corner of her mouth, unreadable brown eyes scanning the room.

Piper ended up digging the small black radio from AJ’s pocket as Mrs. Weasley was unable to take the twins’ from them with magic. McGonagall took care of the triplets as Fleur dove at Gabby’s own pockets.

Soon, the Trio and Americans were the only ones left that hadn’t touched their pockets and Harry felt panic as the attention of the room was on them.

The personal radios that Tony had given them were still in their pockets and like bloody hell they were giving them up.

“Well,” he heard Deeks sigh. “Now what?”

He, Tony and Palmer came to stand with Mac and the Trio, presenting something of a united front, but it only served to make them look guilty.

The Order members wasted no time in moving around them as Harry felt Tony pull him slightly in front of him.

“You trust me?” he felt Tony’s warmth as his friend bent down to whisper into his ear. “Let them take it out of your pocket, but do _not_ touch it.”

Yes, he trusted Tony, but he still glanced behind him with a frown. Hermione nudged him and waited until he looked at her to give him a look.

Palmer stood behind her, only his eyes moving as he scanned the room.

Harry looked ahead, only to find Dumbledore’s disappointment in front of him.

“Harry,” he sighed. “I expected better from you.”

“I know, sir,” he gave the answer as blandly as possible, not wanting anyone to know that he didn’t have much of an idea nor that he was panicking about revealing his radio despite Tony telling him to do so.

“You have put yourself and others at risk, as I am sure you realize.”

“Actually, Headmaster,” Snape cut in, black eyes narrowing at Tony. “I do not quite think that it is _Potter_ who we should be asking.”

“Which makes it even worse, doesn’t it?” Tony shot back. “The adult capable of making his own decisions –”

“Which may have well just killed us all,” one of the Order members scoffed.

“- just so happened to do just that,” he didn’t seem to hear the man, Harry concentrating on breathing and keeping his eyes forward. He did notice out of the corner of his eyes that Ron and Hermione were doing the same thing, AJ having retreated to press against him. “By the way, did you just automatically _assume_ like a probie that we were all in danger? Sadly, it doesn’t surprise me at all. And no, you didn’t just ask one of us in private, that didn’t cross your minds. You just assumed the worst case scenario and instantly reacted.”

“Now, Tony,” Sprout heaved a heavy sigh. “There is no doubt in my mind that your heart was in the right place, but the fact is that there are ways to get around security measures and you have just provided that way to other parties.”

“Hand it over,” Mrs. Weasley stepped forward, hand held out expectantly with a disappointed air. “You ought to be ashamed of yourselves, putting everyone in danger like this. You, Harry, especially know better.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” he said simply, but he didn’t reach for it, trusting Tony to not do anything to get them in more trouble. Instead, mindful of AJ and her position against him, he slowly drew his hands back until he laced them together behind his back. Movement on either side told him that Ron and Hermione had done the same, but was probably taking his cues.

Tony put his hands on his shoulders and gave him a comforting squeeze, wordlessly saying that he was doing the right thing.

“I see we’ll just have to take it, then,” Sprout nodded.

“Guess,” Ron agreed, eyes still locked on the front of the room.

“If anything else,” Dumbledore gave them a wry smile, “I see you were put in the correct House after all.”

“They were,” Mac answered, Harry glancing over to see her stance mirroring his, her back straight and head held high. “It takes a lot of courage to trust someone.”

“But it is foolish to trust the wrong person,” Snape drawled, black eyes never leaving Tony’s green, the Italian no doubt giving him his own glare.

“And I should think,” he couldn’t help answering back, “that the person to trust is not a decision lightly made. You have to really listen to what your gut tells you. If it tells you no, you don’t trust them.”

“Should have thought about taking that advice, Potter,” Snape scowled.

Fleur came up to Hermione to collect the radio hidden in her pocket as Mrs. Weasley stepped in front of Ron, who was trembling but still held firm.

Tony’s hands slid down from his shoulders, down his arms and encircled his wrists. Harry was glad he did because Snape suddenly darted forward and Harry reflexively struggled against him, Tony’s grip tight as he heard both of his friends cry out.

It was a brief struggle, but when the adults stepped away with anger, disappointment and triumph, Hermione’s quiet gasp and Ron’s startled noise vaguely made it through his own shock as he stared blankly at the _small black object_ in Snape’s hand.

One he’d never seen before in his _life_.

Until tonight, that is.

That was not his radio.

His blank stare must have been mistaken for something else because Snape just tsked condescendingly at him, the idea that Tony somehow switched their radios giving him a jolt of dawning realization.

So _that_ was why Tony had told him to let it be taken.

Bill entered his line of sight between Snape and Dumbledore, the older Weasley brother wearing a puzzled frown as he tipped one of the black radios up for a closer look, but Harry was only vaguely aware of that as Snape watched him and Dumbledore started to lecture them in that disappointed way of his.

Not like he paid much attention, mind working to figure out what Tony was up to. There was a reason that he’d done the switch, but what was it?

The cry on his left made him whip around to see Deeks struggling with an Order member who was pawing at his pockets and Harry recognized the panic on the blond’s face too late as the triumphant Order member finally managed to extract it from him. He was stepping away just as Deeks let reflex take over and punched him.

“Deeks!” Ginny called, Hermione’s shout echoing a second later. “It’s okay!”

“The hell it isn’t!” he was pale and shaky as he ended up back to back with Ron.

Harry glanced down to make sure AJ was alright, her face buried against his arm, when the look on Bill’s face registered as Dumbledore moved to where Deeks was. That was the same time all his friends in the room suddenly dropped to the ground with cries of shock and surprise.

He didn’t know what was going on and tried taking a step, but Tony wrapped an arm around his waist and around AJ’s as he fell backwards with his weight dragging the surprised pair down on top of him. The fireplace roared to life and Harry caught a glimpse of reddish pink streaks of light before Tony rolled the three of them over and he found AJ in his arms as Tony covered them, the room filling with cries and shouts above them.

It probably didn’t last as long as he thought it did, but Tony levered himself up and off as the spells stopped flying through the air.

“What the hell is going on here?!”

Harry uncurled from AJ and sat up with wide eyes to see Agent Donners standing in front of the fireplace, a group of other Agents – including (Not) Fred Stevens – gathered around him.

Ron touched his arm and Harry looked at him to see the same surprise and shock on his own face.

“Are you alright, AJ?” Hermione’s question had them both turning to see her cradling AJ as Ginny and Gabby crawled over to them and Harry looked up to see the adults – all but a few – encased in some sort of pink covering that began at their knees and went up to cover the rest of them. Their arms were bound to their bodies and he had the hysterical thought of pink eggs with legs – but they were hovering seven inches above the floor.

“DiNozzo!” Harry looked up at Tony to see Donners stepping over those still on the ground and around the flailing legs of the encased to reach them. “Everyone still alive?”

“Yeah,” Tony looked around at them, giving Harry an apologetic look. “Shaken, but alive.”

Palmer dropped down beside him with a small smile. “Yeah, shook up. Are you guys alright?”

“What in the world is going on?” Hermione wanted to know. Palmer helped them all up, Mac and Tony going to help Deeks.

“Alright, Potter?”

He looked up, still not sure what had happened, and met Donners’ blue eyes as they scanned over him and his friends. “Uh, I guess?”

It was apparently the answer he was looking for because he gave a nod. “Someone want to tell me what the hell happened?”

“It was a misunderstanding,” Mac shook her head. “The Headmaster and these other Aurors thought we were a security risk to anyone who might want to crash the wedding. They were just doing their jobs.”

“Yeah, by screwing with the job I told you, Palmer, Deeks and DiNozzo to take care of,” Donners scowled. He turned to Dumbledore. “What the hell is your excuse, Dumbledore?”

The Headmaster was brought down and Donners waved his wand at him, letting the pink covering to melt to the floor before dissolving. “Douglas,” he didn’t seem to mind his arms still bound as he nodded. “To what do we owe this pleasure?”

“You and your people just managed to screw up one of my Agent’s cases. I had him on security detail and you didn’t just ask?” he threw his hands up as he started getting agitated. “You had to drag everyone into a room and force it outta them? What the hell kind of operation are you running here? Did it once cross your mind that you just put one of my Agents in danger? Did you? No, it didn’t. You’re so obsessed with making an example of people that you don’t take into account your actions,” he shook his head as his eyes spit fire. “This is a sensitive mission you’ve just wrecked, I’ll tell you here and now. It’s called obstruction and I could give a rat’s ass if it was a misunderstanding! You do not mess with a case that I set my Agent on, are we clear?”

“Um, Agent Donners?” Hermione meekly spoke up as they kind of clustered together. “This technically isn’t MNP jurisdiction… is it?”

“It is, technically,” Fred S. spoke up from the front of the room, helping the others up who dove to the floor. “Mac is MNP, after all. Since she was here, Tony – being an Agent attached to our unit – was sent in as her back up in addition to helping with Potter’s security detail. I don’t think it really occurred to many here, by the way,” he looked over with a grin, “that in dragging you all here and making you give up what no one would have suspected in the first place if it wasn’t for Moody, they pretty much sold you out. Those are MNP radios set to a very secure frequency, monitored at all times back at HQ. You agreed to help on Tony’s case and were given the radios because of that – as well as being close enough to Harry that you would be around him anyway if things went south.”

“Yeah,” Tony nodded. “The radios also have this really awesome alert that gets activated after a certain amount of time unique to each individual radio. It also helps that the radio recognizes a person’s magic so that it would set off that alert in a manner unique to the individual it recognizes. The joker who went after Deeks sent off that alarm because me, Palmer, Deeks and Mac have the high profile alerts common with all ‘active’ Agents. Harry and the kids had their alarms go off when someone else touched the radio that didn’t have their magic signature.”

“You – you…set them up?” Hermione asked incredulously.

“Well, hey,” Tony spread his hands. “They’re the ones who didn’t do what they should have done and dragged everything into the open.”

Harry looked at Ron, who looked back with a look on his face that was quickly bordering on amusement. A slightly hysterical amusement that was bubbling in his own chest, but amusement nonetheless.

Donners stalked into the kitchen, obviously trying to calm down, as Tony left Deeks with Mac to return to their side.

“Unbelievable,” Ginny breathed.

“We work differently than the Aurors,” Palmer answered somewhat sheepishly.

Harry watched Tony hover next to him and shook his head. “I understand why you didn’t tell us,” he told him, the other obviously getting the other message, “because we wouldn’t really know anything to confess.”

“It was kind of dependent on you guys not knowing. If these guys kept their mouths shut, you would have never known about it until tomorrow. Besides,” he shrugged. “If these guys didn’t know, no one else would have. But they blew our cover.”

Dumbledore looked contrite. “I do apologize, Tony.”

“Yeah, I know,” he nodded. “But the professional thing would have been to take one of us aside and asked about it. We did know the risks involved in being ‘security breaches’, but I assure you in that we really did prepare for it.”

Those that had been encased in the … pods, Harry was going to call them, were lowered to the floor and the covering melted off of them, too, as Donners came in to yell at Kingsley.

Fleur – arms still bound like the others – spoke softly to Gabby, who shook her head.

“You did not trust anyone ‘ere, Fleur,” she spoke English. “’ow can you expect our new family to trust you now? You demanded, like zey all did,” she nodded at the others involved, “but you did not ask. You are now married, _soeur_ , so that means you ask like an adult instead of demanding like a child.”

“DiNozzo,” Donners nodded at her. “Recruit that one for MNP, would you? She can be one of the mediators on staff that could keep me from shooting people.”

“They really don’t, though. You’d shoot people regardless.”

Harry did feel kind of sorry for Fleur as she hung her head at her sister’s lecture. Bill came up beside her and held out one of the black radios to him. “Check the bottom,” he advised, arms still bound.

He took it and let the others look over his shoulder as he tilted the bottom up for inspection. It was faint, but Harry could make out what he remembered as the MNP logo, an Owl, an Eagle and a Phoenix.

“It’s stamped on all of them,” Bill looked actually amused at the whole thing. “And they’re right, you know? We probably should have done this differently, especially when we found that Tony had one, too,” he started chuckling. “If you can believe it, I didn’t remember Tony was MNP until I saw that logo before things went to hell.”

“That’s why he’s so good at undercover work,” Palmer grinned.

AJ suddenly wrapped her arms around Tony and Harry smiled slightly as she started giggling into his suit jacket.

“Yeah,” he rubbed the back of his head. “I guess it is kind of crazy.”

Harry knew they were kind of in shock right now, but it _was_ kind of funny. Especially to see the tables turned on the Order for once.

“I think we should head out,” Tony patted AJ a few times before she pulled away with a grin. “We need to at least get Deeks settled,” he added, cutting a glance to where the pale blond was still leaning on Mac as horrible memories were no doubt running through his head.

Mr. Weasley still had his arms bound as he tried getting Donners to calm down a little, but Mrs. Weasley zeroed in on Tony as he checked to make sure all the kids were alright – including their friends.

“While it is commendable that you volunteered to help us with the security,” she stepped right up to them, “you did not once think to tell those of us who were in charge of the security.”

“No, but I would have if one of you had asked. Besides, it’s good to have two completely separate operations going with the same goal in mind sometimes. Just in case one layer is compromised, the other layer can still do the job without being implicated in anything.”

“And yet you still put the children in danger by enlisting them into this ‘case’,” she scowled, making Tony narrow his eyes.

“Harry,” he looked up at him. “I want you and the others to get Deeks somewhere that he can calm down. And I think, if you prefer, Mrs. Weasley and I have some things to discuss.”

“What you say can be said amongst everyone in this room,” she told him, face red and eyes burning. “So, you admit it, then?”

“I figured that the kids would be the best line of defense since they are – you know – around Harry twenty four seven. They would have the best chance of being nearby and I don’t think they would abandon him to go running off for help.”

“But you would use children to do your job for you?” Harry bristled at her tone, as if Tony wasn’t capable of deeper thought and that he was a git that deserved a dressing down.

Tony suddenly went rigid at that, green eyes turning hard. “Harry, take everyone with you and go. Now.”

“Perhaps,” Snape spoke up almost lazily. “DiNozzo doesn’t want anyone to know what he’s truly done.”

“I don’t want to smash any illusions,” Tony’s tone registered and Harry started inching his friends toward the exit.

“Illusions you put into their heads, no doubt,” Mrs. Weasley didn’t seem to hear her husband’s urging for quiet.

“Molly,” Dumbledore also recognized the warning in Tony’s voice.

“No,” Snape had this smile that Harry didn’t much like. “Children sometimes need to have illusions broken, Albus. This may be a good time to start when Mr. Potter and his friends realize that not all adults should be trusted so easily.”

“That’s what I’ve been _saying_ ,” AJ rolled her eyes at Harry, one of the few close enough to hear her.

Hermione shushed her as the Hufflepuff started pulling Harry’s arm toward the kitchen.

“Severus, -”

“Did all of the children do this willingly?” Mrs. Weasley suddenly asked. “Or did you manipulate them somehow? Did you hold anything over their heads?”

“No,” Tony answered, back going straight. “Might I add that you really don’t have room to talk?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You accuse _me_ of manipulating emotions in order to achieve a goal?” he pointed at himself with a huff of disbelieving laughter. “I don’t know what in Merlin’s name you take me for, but I will not be lectured to by a hypocrite.”

“Now, Tony,” Mac started tugging his arm to where Harry and the others stopped to watch.

“I beg your pardon?” Mrs. Weasley puffed up in outrage.

“You heard me. Hypocrite. As in pot and kettle calling each other ‘black’ kind of hypocrite.”

“And where do you get off on coming up with these outrageous lies?”

He pointed at her as Mac really started pushing with pressure. “About the same place you came up with the idea of using Gabby Delacour as a _spy_!”

In the ensuing silence, Deeks huffed a sigh.

“Maybe we shoulda left when we had the chance.”

* ** 

Palmer heaved a sigh as he watched the others spread around the sitting room of the tent while the wedding party still went on outside.

Fred S. had only stayed long enough to get everyone settled in one piece and left with the others back to the States. Only he, Deeks, Mac and Tony were left on the American side.

Ginny was with Gabby – the redhead having warmed up to her future, well, new sister in the last few days -, the Brit curled around the blonde and just petting her hair while she made soothing noises that Palmer didn’t think was conscious due to the glaze in her brown eyes as she processed through the information she’d heard.

Mac was with AJ and the Benson girls as they tried teaching her a British game and Deeks was nearby with Neville and Vince Muldoon, just listening to the girls.

Lee Jordan was with the Weasley twins elsewhere, but Palmer was more worried about Ron.

Tony had dragged the Trio into the sleeping room and none of them had had the heart to disturb them after …

When Tony had revealed to the room that Gabby had been manipulated into reporting their every move to Mrs. Weasley, it hadn’t looked like news to Deeks, who was also a trained investigator and probably came to that conclusion long ago.

Why she’d been used as a spy was something that was termed ‘official Auror business’, but he had the feeling that there was something else that wasn’t being said. Gabby had willingly done it because she had thought that she could buy Mrs. Weasley’s affections since her sister was marrying one of the older Witch’s sons and maybe she could thaw her out a little into fully accepting her and her sister.

That was when Palmer had stopped listening and had helped Mac and Deeks drag those nearest to them outside for Donners to deal with. Tony had looked incredibly guilty once he realized what he’d done, but Ron had assured him that he had nothing to be sorry about.

Palmer had to admit, even he was feeling kind of betrayed at her actions. It was one thing to not tell her the truth about what had really happened last year, but to actually use a family member against another was just…

He had seen the anger on Tony’s face on Gabby’s behalf and knew that the fire was fueled with the memories of so many things that had happened in his almost ten years at NCIS. But at least Molly Weasley hadn’t turned anyone against each other like Gibbs did.

He looked at the time and noted it was past midnight. The wedding was officially over, but the party was still going strong.

Eventually, they were going to need to sleep, but he didn’t know if that was going to happen very soon.

He looked around and decided to check on Tony and the Trio, so he got up and headed down that way, pausing just outside the ‘room’ entrance when he heard voices.

“ – know, I know,” he heard Hermione’s voice quiver. “But it’s Mrs. Weasley and… how could she –”

“About a quarter or a third of us knew in that room why she would do it,” Tony bitterly answered.

“And why didn’t you say something sooner?” Harry asked, tone kind of blank.

He heard Tony heave a sigh. “Because there are some adults that are best left on a pedestal to their kids. Whether that illusion shatters has to be a natural course of things. Not something that someone blurted out.”

“Well, I’m glad you did,” Hermione breathed a sigh. “Really. Tony, you had our best interests at heart.”

“Yeah, and look where it got them in the first place. Got you in the first place.”

“You’re different. We can trust you, Tony.”

“Blind trust and faith got us into one situation, Mi, it can only get us into worse.”

“How much worse can it get? And you have to remember that you yourself are putting that same blind faith and trust in us.”

“There’s nothing ‘blind’ about it. I can see the potential that the three of you have, but Merlin forbid the Order give you just a little responsibility.”

‘The Order? What did they have to do with anything?’ Palmer wondered. ‘Better yet, _what_ is this Order?’

“And you can see what lack of communication happened tonight,” he went on. “They just assumed that you didn’t know any better. Speaking of which, I really didn’t mean to use you in any way.”

“You didn’t use anyone,” Harry entered the conversation. “The others knew, right? They willingly volunteered. I mean, you straight up asked them if they wanted to carry a radio – even though they had already signed that parchment. You didn’t force them. Okay, yeah, you could’ve told us that you gave us those in disguise as ours, but I understand that it was to make sure I couldn’t talk you out of it. Or Hermione. You wanted us to be safe in a way that you felt wasn’t smothering and that’s what you did. And I agree, it was better to have those radios be in disguise instead of our actual ones or the secret would be out.”

That was news to Palmer. Since when did Tony give them radios to keep? He hadn’t seen anything of the sort.

The conversation lapsed into silence for a moment.

“She used Gabby,” Hermione reluctantly voiced. “That wasn’t okay.”

“Yeah, how could she do that?” Ron asked, a mix of emotions in his voice. “She didn’t spend time with the sisters, so … I mean, I knew that she wanted us out of Order business, but I thought Gabby was with us so Ginny could get used to the idea.”

“She’s a parent,” Tony said simply. “She only wanted what she thought was best for her kids. And we all know she’s not going to apologize for it since she thinks she was doing her job. You guys shouldn’t have this idea that parents will do whatever they can if they think they are doing the right thing. No matter what it does to the kids, as long as her goals are met.”

“But she’s a _parent_ ,” Hermione sounded incredulous. “She’s not supposed to manipulate anyone who doesn’t know better. I mean, little kids are one thing, but Gabby’s not a child. They want to know that they are doing a good job for others.”

“And that’s why it’s easy to manipulate kids,” Tony was probably shaking his head. “They have this drive to want to be good enough for praise and the adults know that. See, the thing about you, Mi and Ron, is that when it comes down to it, you have both led something of a sheltered childhood. That’s kind of why it’s hard for you to understand that not all parents are good people. It’s hard for Harry, because he looks on … her, as a sort of maternal figure in his own way. He knows about his Aunt and Uncle and the blinders they have concerning their kid. He knows that there are parents out there that adore their kids to the point where they are actually hurting the kids and there are parents who truly adore their kids as every parent should in an ideal world. Yes, she wanted to keep you safe and she thought that sending Gabby as a mole was the best way to do that, but – in doing that – she created this screwed up illusion in Gabby’s mind that the only way to make her happy was to tell on you. That will make Gabby feel like crap, thinking that she’s betrayed the family she wanted to impress and it’s not her fault. Ron, it’s going to be up to you and Ginny and the twins to be her family right now. Sit her down and explain to her that she has nothing to apologize for. It was not her fault. You have to show her that she’s welcome to be a part of the family. Help fix this, if only this piece of it.”

Ron was silent for a moment. “You need to do it, too,” he finally told them. “You three are part of the family, too.”

“Of _course_ we’ll help,” Hermione agreed.

“Yeah,” Harry echoed. “You’re our family, too. We won’t let you do this alone.”

Tony predictably agreed and Palmer felt the smile cross his face.

His friend – maybe his very best friend besides Mac and maybe Dr. Mallard – had genuinely adopted the Trio and they him. It filled Palmer with warmth that Tony had a bigger support group to support him and his smile faded slightly as he thought of how the team had been treating him.

Now that Tony’s ‘witness protection’ story was all over the Yard – thanks to Eames -, the team had been careful with Tony because they believed that the story was true and didn’t want him taxing himself with undercover work and he’d learned from Abby – and an eavesdropping Sally – that Gibbs had made Vance put the kibosh on any undercover work that may crop up.

Palmer had thought it sweet until he realized that Gibbs wanted all his team to be on their best game and Tony taxing his already ‘strained’ skills wouldn’t be conducive to that.

It had been all Jenny Shepard’s fault.

She came in and screwed Palmer’s friends – no, his _team_ – up with first Ziva, who she ordered to find a way into the team and to buy their affections – his opinion, anyway, so he didn’t have conclusive evidence on that -, and then that whole SNAF _U_ in every sense of the term with Gibbs and poor Tony was just the easy target.

A flush of shame and guilt filled him as he remembered his own issues that he let take precedence over Tony, which Palmer now realized was about the time that the Trio had entered the Italian’s life and he felt a soul deep gratitude that the three friends had taken the mantle to be the friend he should’ve been.

He was closer to Tony than they had been – or Mac and Eames for that matter -, but he didn’t see.

Didn’t see Tony falling to a point that he would’ve never gotten up from if it hadn’t been for Harry Potter and his two best friends.

And he wasn’t ever going to forgive himself for that.

It was a part of his decision to tell the Trio about the real story concerning Tony’s disappearance and he hadn’t regretted it because he believed the Trio could do it if enough people gave them the chance to put their skills to the test – and maybe if Tony was the goal of the task.

“I think the three of you are also forgetting one little thing, though,” Tony’s voice brought Palmer back to the present. “When the three of you graduate –”

“We know,” Hermione interrupted. “But look. We already have Peter to help us on this and Agent Donners if it comes down to it. We just need to let the year play out that we have left to see where we stand. We will deal with it when the time comes.”

“But these guys have, ya know, _connections_ ,” Tony pointed out. “They’ll block everything we come up with, playing the ‘it’s not safe enough’ card.”

“Well,” Ron said, “I guess we might have to transfer somewhere else.”

“And _that’s_ assuming Riddle’s guys aren’t going to get to you first.”

‘Maybe they should think about signing up for the International Liaison pilot program someone was telling me about last week,’ Palmer mused.

It was something lighting the grapevine on fire lately, the idea gaining support from a variety of departments and slowly making its way to the nearest base in Norfolk and Falls Church. He was actually interested to see what the other MNP offices would make of it. He thought it was a good idea and one worth investigating. Then he wondered if Mac heard of it, yet, and her thoughts on it.

If they had built-in translators or citizens of their ally countries already there, that would help the Liaison units especially as they worked with those countries’ Muggles who knew about magic.

He idly wondered who came up with the idea and how they did it. He would never have thought about it if it were him.

‘I wonder how long it’s been in the works, anyway,’ he decided to head back to the sitting room and had turned around to do so when he registered someone standing there. His heart jolted as he flew back from the figure, only to trip over a sleeping bag and go down with a yelp.

“Sorry, Palmer,” he looked up from trying to untangle himself and found AJ smiling sheepishly at him from the entrance. “I was just checking up on you.”

“Alright, Palmer?” Tony had a grin on his face as he came to help him sort himself out and stand.

“Oh, uh, yes,” he straightened his glasses somewhat sheepishly. “I didn’t even see you,” he told AJ.

“It’s a thing with her,” Tony patted his shoulder. “You get used to it after a while.”

“No, you don’t,” Ron scowled, Palmer looking over to see him in the corner with Harry on one side and Hermione on the other. It was obvious how Tony had been sitting directly in front of the redhead, since that was where the other sleeping bag was kind of trampled. “ _I_ haven’t.”

“Give it time,” Tony advised.

“I don’t know if you’re one to talk,” Palmer pointed out. “What with Gibbs and all.”

His friend lifted a shoulder. “Sometimes.”

And the former Marine didn’t seem to realize just how tense Tony was, drawing more startled reactions, or how Tony gave a few seconds’ pause before reacting, having found the man first.

“I didn’t mean to, Professor,” AJ turned to Tony.

“I said cut that out, Johnson. I’m not your professor. Who gave you that idea, anyway? I bet it was Dumbledore,” he rolled his eyes. “For some reason unknown to me, that lunatic’s been trying to get me to take the Defense position for a few years now.”

“Why don’t you?” Hermione smiled slightly.

Tony just made a face. “I’m not one for grading, Mi.”

“Probably a good thing, then,” Ron lightly added to Harry. “Tony would probably spend all his time grading Hermione’s homework.”

“What’s wrong with that?” she rounded on them.

“The teachers want _four_ inches, not eight!”

“It just shows how dedicated you are to your education,” Hermione frowned.

“AJ,” Ron waved her over. “If Sprout gave you six inches, would you give her six or seven?”

Palmer had to smile at the conversation as it got Ron’s mind off his mother’s actions.

“Hey,” Tony clapped his shoulder. “Thanks for the good timing.”

“That was kind of all AJ, so I can’t really take the credit,” he demurred.

“Yeah. Listen,” Tony leaned closer, expression serious. “The kids’ll be going into their Seventh Year this coming September. I can’t guarantee if we’ll be able to visit them for whatever reason. You know about Riddle, so the school may prevent certain… visitors and I’ve been thinking that we might get turned away. Let me know if any of your mail comes back with letters that don’t sound like the Trio.”

“Tony,” he gave him a side look. “Why does it sound like you’ll be kept from the Trio?”

“There’s a chance,” he shook his head, glancing back and missing the panic that Palmer _knew_ flashed on his face.

“What? No, Tony,” he started shaking his own head. “I’m sure this is some kind of paranoia –”

“Not if my gut starts rolling every time I think about it,” Tony locked gazes with him. “After this summer, there is no absolute guarantee that I’ll be able to hang out with the Trio because of reasons I’m not fully cleared to give you. But I will tell you what I told Peter: there are people who are not happy with my involvement.”

“Peter knows? Did he tell you that you’re crazy?” Palmer fought the panic that was filling him.

Tony couldn’t be taken from the Trio. He _couldn’t_.

Never mind the Trio’s states when they’ve been practically thriving in his company, but what about Tony?

This wasn’t good.

Tony had a lot invested in the Trio because he had adopted them and Palmer didn’t want to think about the repercussions of his forced separation from them.

He had never – in all his years at the Yard or elsewhere – seen the Italian completely lose it like Palmer knew he was capable of.

And he wasn’t about to let that happen now.

“Well, is there anything we can do?” he tried keeping the desperation from his face, but didn’t know how successful he was.

“I don’t know,” Tony rubbed his mouth with his other hand. “But keep an eye out if someone from the Ministry visits out of the blue, alright?”

“Those… are some serious allegations,” Palmer felt sick at the thought. Even if it was the work of an overactive mind.

“You don’t know what these people are capable of.”

Maybe not.

“O-okay,” he suddenly couldn’t breathe. “I-I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Hey, you alright?” Tony was suddenly looking at him with concern. “You got pale all of a sudden.”

“I’m fine,” he gave him a smile and started backing away. “Just… I have to… Blood sugar,” he all but ran away from his friend, blindly letting his legs move him out of the tent into the summer air.

He soon found himself in the orchard, pacing back and forth in the small area where that apple wall had been, hands pulling his hair as he let the panic take him over.

Scenarios – worst case scenarios – filled his mind as he let his imagination go, thinking about Tony’s attachment to the Trio and unable to imagine his friend without them.

He was vaguely aware that he was hyperventilating at the thought of Tony’s impending breakdown one day in the future – Tony could very easily take out half the Yard – and only stopped moving when a pair of hands forced him down on his rump, pushing his head between his knees.

He absently started breathing, forcing his panic back in order to clear his mind, grateful for the hands rubbing his back and arm, only recognizing the voice murmuring in his ear when he was breathing deeply again.

“Are you okay, now?” he looked up into Mac’s concerned brown eyes. She must have followed him out.

“No,” he thought he had slipped into some sort of shock. “No, I’m not – they’re going to separate them!”

“What?” she furrowed her brow. “Who – what?”

“Tony and the Trio,” he grabbed her shoulders. “Someone’s planning to keep them from each other.”

“ _What_?! Wait, just, _who_?” she shook her head. “Why? Palmer –”

“Someone thinks of Tony as some sort of… I don’t know. Some kind of security breach? Mac, Tony _can’t_ be taken from them. He’s too attached to them!”

She tried to find some sort of words, brown eyes searching his blue. “Okay,” she sat back on her heels. “Palmer, even if these allegations are true –”

“Which they are!”

“Even so,” she pacified, “who would sanction this idea?”

“I-I don’t know,” he shook his head. “I- someone who has put some sort of fear into Tony –” He went rigid as he suddenly had a thought. “The Order.”

“What?”

“That’s the only explanation, don’t you see? The Order is the one that put this idea into Tony’s head, which means that there may very well be a legitimate concern here –”

“The Order?” Mac was trying to understand. “I - Who or what is the Order?”

That brought him to a halt, blue eyes wide. “I-I … don’t know. I didn’t mean to overhear, I _swear_. It just came up in conversation and –”

“Want some advice, Palmer?” Mac had this small grin on her face when he looked up. “If you eavesdrop, don’t confess if you don’t have to.”

“Well – I -”

“But never mind that,” she was serious again. “You believe that this is an actual threat because Tony thinks this is an actual threat. That is enough for me to take this with a grain of salt.”

“But it’s not only that,” Palmer relaxed as Mac gave all indications that she was taking this with the seriousness it warranted. “Tony may have also implied that steps could be taken to ensure that… Tony or the Trio don’t demand to see each other. Preferably if they forgot about each other.”

Mac’s brown eyes sharpened. “This Order is planning to _erase memories_ to keep them apart? That – alright,” she took a deep breath before letting it go. “Palmer, listen to me. There is a chance that it’s not going to happen. That being said, there is also the chance that it _could_ happen. This means that they will have to start the memory erasing process early enough on all counts, but not too early to start making things suspicious. My suggestion is that we keep an eye on ourselves and each other to make sure that our memories are okay and that we keep a close watch on Tony. The very minute we start thinking that something is wrong, we will then take action to make sure that everything will be fine. Alright? We will head things off at the pass and we will take action – drastic if possible – to keep them together. I know Tony’s attached himself to them and that is why I am going to help you keep this Order from him.”

“Really?” he couldn’t believe it.

“Really,” she softened with a sad smile. “I wasn’t a good friend to him, either, you know.”

“But it wasn’t your fault. You were in a different situation.”

“I was more or less ready to move to _Australia_ , Palmer,” she scoffed. “I didn’t think about talking to Tony about it and that hurt him, I could see it in his eyes. If this harebrained idea of ours has even the remotest chance of beginning to make it up to him, I will throw myself behind this and kidnap the Trio myself if I need to.”

The conviction on her face made him settle in a way he hadn’t realized wasn’t settled. “Promise?” he wanted more than anything to keep Tony happy.

They both did.

“Promise,” she smiled before sticking out her pinky.

He grinned back and locked his own around it, “Pinky promise. Now you can’t go back on it.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t. You’ll see, Palmer,” she squeezed his arm. “We’ll keep them together. We’ll find a way.”

“We’ll find a way,” he nodded.

‘We _have_ to.’

Tony depended on it.


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this years before today, but it fits. 
> 
> I'm so sorry for this. For the election results, for any future backlash in the wider global audience...
> 
> And the dark place that the story will have to go. 
> 
> I did not want to do this, or have this happen, but it will and I'm sorry. 
> 
> (I also didn't see That Episode, so it's all head cannon from here on out.)
> 
> Series or Season 3 does not exist, or 4, for reasons that will become obvious in Secrets. Do not look for them in this universe.
> 
> Three more chapters left, at least. Then it's off to Eureka for a new adventure.

Harry, Ron and Hermione greeted the morning with something resembling soul deep sighs.

It was a new day, but it was time to say good bye to old friends.

Vince and Lee Jordan and the triplets and twins had to leave almost immediately after waking. Lyric Weasley dropped by the tent to say her farewells soon afterward.

Harry saw her grab Gabby almost desperately in a huge bear hug and smiled because their cousin had already forgiven Gabby for things she didn’t need forgiveness for.

The blonde herself would be staying until after lunch in light of recent information, or so Tony had told them, much to their delight.

But the hardest goodbye was the one they had to say to AJ, the Hufflepuff being recalled back to her Foster home before breakfast.

“We’ll miss you to bits,” Hermione would have already almost strangled the smaller brunette if she hadn’t been doing the same thing to her.

“Yeah,” Ginny agreed, giving the smaller girl a big grin. “But you will be here for Neville and Harry’s birthday party, right?”

“Like I would miss that,” she smiled back.

Ron almost crushed AJ, who let him, and Gabby shed some tears when the brunette turned to her, AJ’s constantly hanging around Harry exposing her to the French blonde and they struck up their own friendship.

She turned to Palmer, who was pretty much an American Hufflepuff in his own right, Mac, Deeks and Tony (“Stop calling me ‘Professor’, damn it!”) and gave them their own hugs.

“Hope to see you again soon,” Deeks gave her an awkward pat on the shoulder. “Because you never know if I’ll still be here this weekend.”

“Keep up the good work at school,” Mac hugged her tight, Palmer shaking her hand.

Tony picked her up and twirled her around, giving her an extra squeeze before setting her back down. “Keep an eye on the Trio, okay? I don’t know if I’ll be seeing them again after the semester starts.”

AJ just gave him that look that Harry saw sometimes last year. It was her ‘do you listen at all to what I tell you?’ and it was actually similar to the one Sherlock had given them in Diagon Alley. “But, Professor –”

“Out. Go. Shoo,” he flapped a hand at her. “And take your delirious fantasies with you.”

“Actually, you’re not far off,” Ron told her. “He’s admitted Dumbledore offered the post.”

“You should take it,” Mac swiped Tony on the arm with a teasing smile. “‘Professor DiNozzo’ has a nice ring to it.”

“Hah. Under Imperio, maybe.”

“What do you have against teaching? You’ll probably blow it right out of the water.”

“Yeah, and the school right up.”

“Hogwarts has survived hundreds of years,” she pointed out. “I’m pretty sure it can survive you.”

“And Harry’s been there for six years now,” AJ cheekily added.

“Oi,” he nudged her with a laugh.

“We should be seeing you again before then,” Mac sighed.

“Take care until then,” Hermione hugged her again.

“Okay,” she wrapped a hand around Harry’s wrist, towing him toward the entrance and Harry went along with her. “See you later, everybody. Bye, Professor!”

“Get out before I help you!”

Once out of danger, Harry and AJ slowly walked in silence.

“I had fun,” she told him, swinging their hands.

“I’m glad,” he smiled. “Though you probably shouldn’t tease Tony about his new nickname.”

“It makes me antsy for the year to start, really.”

“But he’s too busy to teach,” Harry shook his head. It would have been nice, though.

“Mm hm,” she shrugged noncommittedly.

“I know Ron’s said this before, but I don’t know what to make of you sometimes.”

“That makes you and Ron, plus me,” she grinned. “But don’t worry about last night,” she got serious. “You’ll help Ron, Ginny, Gabby and the twins. And then Ron can help Gabby when she needs it most. It’ll be fine. And then, when you’ve survived a few years, you’ll laugh about it.”

“Maybe,” he sighed.

They reached the door and Harry smiled slightly as she turned to face him.

“I’ll see you this weekend,” she smiled a little sadly. “And everyone.”

“Including ‘Professor DiNozzo’?”

“Yeah. Especially.” She hugged tight and he hugged just as tight back. “I guess you aren’t going in, huh?” they pulled away.

“No. Mac said we were going to eat in the tent today.”

“Alright, well, I better go. See you.” She gave him one last smile before going in and leaving him alone.

He waved at her through the door and headed back to the tent where Palmer had managed to get into a Herbology argument with Neville.

“I didn’t think there was anything in Herbology to argue _about_ ,” Deeks commented, drinking his coffee as he watched the pair hissing at each other in the sitting area.

“I guess every field has their controversies,” Mac shrugged, not moving from where she was sat close to Tony, who was taking care of breakfast since Deeks didn’t feel confident enough with anything fancy, Palmer didn’t really cook anyway and the last time Mac was allowed to cook … The less said about that, the better.

“You don’t have to keep watching, Mackenzie,” he didn’t turn around, making Harry think that the Marine’s watching like a hawk was normal. “I’m not Rabb. You’ll get your meat when it’s done. No switching out, promise.”

“She does love her meat, though, huh,” Deeks had to grin as Mac watched Tony’s every move.

“Of course,” she lifted a shoulder. “Best thing in the world.”

Once Palmer and Neville managed to come to some sort of truce, the group sat at the table and found fluffy scrambled eggs with cheese sauce, steaming rolls with butter ready to be cut, crunchy bacon – which Mac promptly took half of despite Tony telling her that there was another pack ready for cooking – and succulent sausage that tasted kind of like maple. And the pancakes almost melted in their mouths with their choice of syrup.

It was one of the best breakfasts that Harry had ever had.

Including the first one he’d ever had at Hogwarts.

“S’good,” Ron and Deeks had heaping seconds, Mac not slowing down after them as she noisily crunched on more bacon.

“So,” Tony spoke after everybody settled down. “Thought we could go flying for the morning. Then, us Americans will go off to do American things in Diagon Alley after lunch.”

“What sort of American things?” Harry couldn’t help asking.

He couldn’t help the smile on his face when Tony gave him a look.

“I think the sort that Brits aren’t allowed to know,” Hermione shrugged.

“Yeah,” Tony nodded. “And if we told you, we’d have to kill you.”

“Oh,” Deeks nodded slightly. “ _Those_ kind of American things. Whelp. Have fun while you’re there and don’t worry about us.”

“Deeks,” Palmer grinned. “He meant you’re coming, too.”

“But I don’t have Americ- oh. Oh, _those_ American things,” he must have seen the look Tony gave him, but Tony had looked away when Harry glanced at him. “Got it.”

“Hey, Tony,” Mac suddenly spoke up as she finished her last serving of eggs. “How do you feel about marriage?”

“Mac,” he huffed a laugh. “First, you just want me for my cooking.”

“Is there any other reason?” she gave him a teasing grin. “But seriously. Marry me.”

“Second,” he added, “I’m kind of already taken.”

She sighed. “The job again, huh?”

“You could say that,” he gave Harry a look and smiled slightly.

“Doesn’t matter. I can wait,” she shrugged.

Harry and his two friends were struggling not to look at each other at that. Bursting into hysterical laughter didn’t help keep secrets.

Breakfast ended with a slight squabble between Mac, Deeks and Ron about who finished what leftovers, but it was quickly settled when Tony revealed an extra half portion of it all so they could split fairly.

“Some JAG you turned out to be,” Tony deadpanned as he watched them finish up.

“Not when your cooking is on the line,” Mac cheerfully countered.

“Can you fly, Gabby?” Palmer wanted to know.

“Little bit,” she answered. “I do not 'ave a broom.”

“Well, that’s alright,” Hermione assured. “You can stay with me and we’ll watch.”

“Who said anything about watching?” Tony looked over with a frown. “I want to see you in the air, Mi. Get a feel for your flying style.”

“B-but I don’t fly,” she shook her head. “And I most _certainly_ don’t have a broom.”

“You can borrow mine,” Deeks offered. “I need to go flying. Feels like I’ve been grounded or something.”

“We can teach Gabby,” Ginny perked up.

“But –”

“Be a Gryffindor,” Tony told Hermione firmly. “You only have a year of school left. After that, you may very well need to fly sometime in the future. You know, not everyone goes into a job that doesn’t require flying at some point.”

“Then I’ll just find one of those jobs that don’t require it.”

“Not if you plan to be an Auror, you’re not.”

Hermione protested all the way out to the field, which was slowly being cleared out as the guests woke and packed up.

Harry and Ron took off into the sky – though not too high – and flew in circles around the group beneath them. Ginny, Mac and Deeks flew up to meet them as Palmer, Tony, Gabby and Hermione stayed near the ground.

“I normally don’t like flying,” Mac told Harry, “but I’m alright when I’m the one in control of the flight instrument.”

“Hey, guys,” Deeks grinned as he hovered nearby on a pretty sleek Nimbus. “How’s about a bit of a race?”

“Harry’s going to beat us all on that,” Ron grumbled good naturedly.

“Well, yeah, since it’s a Firebolt and everything. But, I mean, we each take a trail in groups of two and the single one of us can determine who will be the winners.”

“Why not?” Harry grinned. “Let’s go to the swimming hole and talk about it.” He glanced down at the others before leading the way, Deeks giving suggestions on how to do this game.

* **

Tony grinned slightly as he saw the others move off, no doubt off to create some sort of game.

Palmer, Gabby and Hermione stood around him and he nodded.

“Okay, girls,” he took his broom and Palmer’s, putting them on the ground on their right sides. “Mi, why don’t you go first? You know how it goes. Wand arm out, say ‘up’.”

She twisted her mouth again and heaved a put upon sigh as she got into position. She paused for a moment before sticking her hand over the broom. “Up!” she said loudly and clearly, looking surprised when it slapped into her hand. “That worked? Why didn’t it work before, in First Year?” she glanced at him with wide brown eyes.

“Maybe you can handle it better,” Palmer suggested.

Tony shrugged. “As good an explanation as any. Gabby, you try now.”

They started with hovering as they worked to get Hermione more comfortable in the air – Tony hadn’t been joking about flying for business – and Gabby to get used to the idea. Eventually, they got the hang of it enough to fly a small race, though the blonde was a little higher than Hermione, who was as close to the ground as she could get away with.

“Maybe she just needs to fly more,” Palmer mused.

“Yeah, more experience and all,” Tony squinted after them.

She just needed to get more time off the ground. To desensitize her or something.

Make no mistake, he was proud of her for getting this far, but he needed to get her to go a little higher.

“So will we be eating lunch inside?” Palmer casually wanted to know, making Tony wince slightly.

“Yeah. I guess we should. Mrs. Weasley is off somewhere with her other lady friends, some of whom know about last night, but she left some lunch out. Charlie Weasley – remember him? – is going to be looking after us today.”

“I can’t say I’m going to miss her today,” Palmer frowned. “It’s just not right to be using kids like that, no matter what the goal is.”

It still angered him, yet he also felt disappointment – as if he had expected better of her. Maybe in a way, he had.

“And don’t go beating yourself up about blowing the whistle,” Palmer scolded. “Deeks told me earlier that he had suspected Gabby didn’t want to hang out with us, either. I guess you two saw it first, huh?”

“Looks that way. I still can’t help but be responsible, though.”

“If she didn’t want to create a fuss, she should have let the kids alone. I’m not suggesting that they couldn’t find out anyway, but maybe it was kind of better to give them crumbs. Not all at once because they would probably worry about that for more than they probably should.”

“Crumbs would be better than nothing at all,” Tony muttered. “And even if the Trio did decide to go off on a harebrained scheme or something, they probably would have planned it all out.”

He was confident that they would have done it, too.

The kids weren’t stupid, after all.

Tony and Palmer watched the girls fly around and let them off the hook before lunch to take a flight themselves.

He passed Harry and Deeks and they all decided to race around the Burrow in one large group, leaving Mi and Gabby to head back to the tent for Gabby’s summer homework. He most certainly wasn’t going to leave Mi on the ground forever, though, and he planned on getting her back up later. That would be him and the Trio flying around and trying to get Mi as comfortable off the ground as he could make her.

Even if he had to jump off a cliff to do it.

He, of course, didn’t want things to get that far, but he would if he had to.

‘Motivation,’ as Peter would say. He would know, after all.

Ginny came over to fly next to him and it looked like she had something she wanted to say, so he looked her over thoughtfully.

“Want to take a walk?” he offered.

They paused mid-flight and she breathed in a deep sigh, watching the others fly on ahead. “In a bit,” she finally decided. “I want to … just hang out for a minute.”

“Okay,” he agreed easily. “Whatever you want to do.”

So they did, turning their brooms a bit lower than their friends in order to skim the tree canopies.

After a few minutes, Ginny heaved a gusty sigh. “I wanted to thank you,” they flew together. “For last night.”

“You don’t have to thank me,” he shook his head.

“Yeah, I do. As upset as I am at all this, I do realize that – had last night never happened and we never got caught – you would never have told us why Mum was _really_ insistent that Gabby hang out with us. And don’t deny it,” she saw him open his mouth. “You would have stayed silent about it while trying to keep Gabby occupied enough so that she wouldn’t have to spy on us. And yeah, I’m upset that she was spying, but Deeks explained it to us when you were with the Trio. He was taking your cues and wouldn’t have spilled the beans, either. So thank you for trying. And tell Deeks, too. But would there have been a different occasion when you would have told us?”

Tony relaxed at the notion that Ginny understood why he had to keep quiet – probably also what Deeks talked about when he was otherwise occupied – and wasn’t upset with him for it. “Ginny, to be honest, I think you four would have figured it out for yourselves eventually if Gabby didn’t start getting suspicious first.

“How do you mean?”

“About Gabby? Well… how do I put this to a civilian?” he smiled slightly at the grin he received. “I noticed that, while Gabby didn’t seem to want to be doing our activities, I think she wanted to stay around. She does like all of you, that was genuine at least, but I’m pretty sure she wanted to be doing her own things, too, which wasn’t possible with the task given to her. I have every confidence that you would have broken through to her – or she to you, especially, Gin – and there would have been a conversation. It’s only speculation at this point, now, but maybe she would have gained your friendship and she would feel just guilty at being a spy or she would wonder why you and Ron were more friendly toward her than your mother. But anyway, it happened, so…”

“I’m glad it did in the way it did,” she decided after a moment to think over his words. “Gabby’s not the one at fault here and I think I would have blamed her and we might not be speaking to each other after that row. And I think I like her now.” She was quiet for a long moment before softly adding, “I kind of felt like the older sibling for once. It was really nice. And I don’t know if I should feel guilty that I’m glad Mum upset her like that.”

“I’m kind of an only child, so I wouldn’t know about anything like that, but I think you’re entitled to feel that way since you’re now an older sister where you weren’t before. That made Gabby go to you since you’re now closer to her age as opposed to Fleur who’s older than Harry. So, I wouldn’t necessarily say that would make you a bad person. It just opened your eyes to your new position and you’re just now realizing that you’re an older sister when just a few days ago you were the youngest.”

“I guess that makes sense,” she nodded after a minute. “And, still, thank you for everything.”

“Don’t thank me, yet,” he quipped. “We still have another week to get through.”

“Well,” she tossed him a grin. “I’d say the worst was over. Can’t get any more than that, right?”

Tony and Ginny eventually landed and took to walking in companionable silence as the others passed overhead once in a while. He figured they had until maybe Thursday before it started raining, which would taper off through Friday to make Saturday clear – not that he was going to tell, of course.

He’d learned the hard way that not even magic was ‘supposed’ to know what the weather was going to do. He and Peter just couldn’t explain it. Luckily, though, the Trio accepted him without missing a beat. His own school friends – and both he and Peter suspected Shep, too – had their suspicions without ever saying anything to them.

Ginny might believe him eventually, but he was surprised about Ron’s reaction to him – or, rather, lack thereof. It was odd that Ron already seemed like he knew or suspected and Tony couldn’t recall if he’d said anything around him that gave him any suspicions about it. Eames and Sherlock never gave him any indication themselves, though Eames had no reason to suspect and Sherlock probably came up with it himself, noted, analyzed, decided it wasn’t very rare or uncommon, put it in a box in his ‘Mind Palace’ and decided to pester Molly for body parts without making a fuss.

That was probably one of the best things about hanging out with a ‘knowledgeable Muggle’: if you had an unusual talent, they wouldn’t crucify you for it. He was actually fairly certain Sherlock knew about Palmer after a rare instance of them meeting once a few years back and Sherlock instantly sneaking bites off Palmer’s meal, Tony realizing it was probably going to give Palmer problems later, while nudging ‘safe’ bites unobtrusively toward Palmer.

Or how they went to a Chinese restaurant and buffet and Sherlock practically served Palmer, himself.

Gabby’s voice broke through his musings and he and Ginny turned to see her and Mi heading toward them. “It ez time for lunch. And zen I will ‘ave to go.”

“So soon?” Ginny smiled sadly and he shared a smile with Mi over their heads.

It wasn’t that long ago since Ginny wouldn’t be even arm’s distance from her younger sister, but now the redhead curled an arm around her shoulders to hug her closer.

“Where are the others now?” Mi wanted to know. “We need to call them in.”

“I think they were heading that way,” Tony pointed off to the right. “Or we could go to the field or something, but that’s all the way around from here.”

“I’ll go up and see,” Ginny released Gabby and kicked off, returning a few minutes later with the rest of the group in tow.

“Alright,” Deeks rubbed his hands together. “Time for lunch.”

“What are we going to do with the brooms, though?” Palmer asked.

“I’ll put them in the tent,” Tony volunteered. “You all go ahead.”

“We’ll come back if it’s not good for you to be in the house,” Mac promised as they handed over the brooms over and departed from the house. Tony shooed the Trio off after them as he stacked the brooms together for transport.

“I’ve done this before,” he assured. “It’s no trouble.”

Mi was all but carried off by their two best friends, leaving Tony to make his way after them. He didn’t see anything wrong with putting some security charms on the brooms in his care just in case. After all, Donners was constantly drilling into the Agents on their floor and general area to take any open opportunity to use security charms on broomsticks and Mac spelled both his and Palmer’s last time so Tony took his turn with grace.

He was whistling as he approached the tent, brooms following him docilely in their stacks of five. Tony stowed them in a corner of the sleeping room and was about to turn to leave when his ear caught his cellphone ringtone.

He dug through his bag and came up with his phone just as the tone stopped. Looking through the phone’s recent activity, Tony frowned slightly as he noted the text from Sherlock he'd gotten yesterday and opened it.

‘ _Please ensure that Ms. Granger reads the letter before school begins or shortly after. It is **imperative** that she reads it as soon as she can. SH._ ’

‘Mi’s getting a letter? Since when? From _Sherlock_?!’

He could just imagine what he might tell the poor girl, so Tony resolved to ask Mi when she’d received anything from Sherlock just to check and make absolutely sure it was ‘appropriate’ before deciding to save the message for reminder later.

That done, he turned to the ‘calls’ section and found eight missed calls on the registry: one from Molly Hooper yesterday and seven from Greg Lestrade just today alone.

Despite Mi having managed to get his phone to run half on magic, Tony had left his phone in his bag through all the excitement yesterday just in case something should happen to it and had put an alarm on it so that he knew it would ring. Even though Molly called around when they were doing the dance performance, he should’ve at least known about the call, which made him frown deeper and absently check the charm. His frown deepened when he didn’t find it there like he should have and started his way toward the Burrow and lunch ensconced in trying to remember when he could’ve ended the charm if he’d left the thing after placing it, when he realized he should probably call Greg to see what he wanted.

He slowed his journey as the phone rang three times before the line was picked up. “Hey, Lestrade. Sorry I missed your call. Must’ve been out of range or something since yesterday or it was on silent and I forgot to leave the ringer on.”

 _“Hey,”_ geeze, he sounded tired. _“I-I’m, uh, just glad I could reach you.”_

Tony definitely heard some kind of relief in the man’s voice and frowned. “I hope you didn’t need me yesterday,” he quipped, remembering the missed call from Molly Hooper. “There was a wedding and a dance party and I didn’t know anyone was trying to reach me. But I’m thinking you want something this morning, considering all your calls. What happened?” he grinned. “Need me to go over to Baker Street and knock some sense back into him? I mean, if he’d had it at all to begin with.”

Tony stopped walking after a few minutes and checked to make sure he didn’t drop the call by accident. “Greg? Hello?”

 _“I… I wouldn’t have minded not reaching you at all if – if it – weren’t for yesterday. God, I wish it_ **was** _yesterday.”_

He was reminded of a near nuclear meltdown that Harry told him that Mi almost had in Third Year with that Time Turner and failed to mention things like it to his Muggle friend, almost telling him that it could be arranged.

“The flat burn down?” his gut was beginning to not like the almost hysterical laughter he’d received in response.

_“If only it were that. If only.”_

Foreboding swept over him at the longing in his tone and he wet his suddenly dry lips, sure he wasn’t going to like what he was about to hear. “So, what pleasure do I owe this call?”

There was a deep sigh that spoke of reluctance to answer before, _“I- There’s some news and I think it only fair that you hear it from me.”_

Sweet Merlin, he _knew_ that tone.

Hell, he’d _used_ that tone when –

“Wait, don’t tell me,” he put his hand up as he tried delaying the news and the confirmation of his suspicions. Emotions were starting to well up and he would be hard pressed to name them as he plastered on a smile. “Finally decided to change your name to Gavin, huh?”

He must have known that Tony suspected what he had to say because his voice softened like Tony’s would when giving news that –

_“Tony, I wish more than anything that I didn’t have to say what I have to say, but, Tony – ”_

* **

Harry sighed as he watched the door for any sign of Tony that didn’t come. “Where is he?”

“I wouldn’t worry, mate,” Ron assured, patting his arm. “Not exactly a rush to get the food, after all.”

After having had a big breakfast, there was only really the sandwiches, crisps and promises of desserts including a rather wriggly sort of jello that Palmer was eying and no doubt had designs on.

Harry was curious about it despite Ron’s disinterest, but the chocolate was more enticing. The moment was firmly about the lunch, though, and he took another half sandwich for himself as he looked around the kitchen.

Moony had had to leave when they came in earlier, so it was just the kids, the Americans, Tonks, Mr. Weasley, Charlie and two Order Members in no hurry to leave.

Mr. Weasley was further along the table with a copy of the _Prophet_ and Hermione was passing in front of him, Harry absently watching him temporarily lose his grip on a page or two just in time for Hermione to glance at the revealed page and do a double take, stopping dead as what she was seeing began to register.

Deeks was passing behind Mr. Weasley and looked over to see Hermione standing there. He had a direct line of sight on her while Harry did not, so he must have seen the expression she had because he started looking concerned. “Hey, you okay?”

Harry had been watching the entire exchange, but a lull in conversation allowed him to hear a noise coming from her. She started paling from what Harry could see and her hands came up to cover her mouth as she started shaking her head and backing away.

“What?” Deeks’ panicked tone brought the room’s attention and Harry straightened as Mr. Weasley lowered the paper.

“Check the _Prophet_ ,” Harry suggested. “She was looking at it as she was moving.”

“The _Prophet_?” Mr. Weasley frowned and started going through the paper, having hit the right place if Deeks letting out a hiss and jerking away with wide eyes was any indication.

“No way,” Deeks began sounding shaky, a hand coming up to cover his mouth as his wide blue eyes darted around, his movements becoming lost and almost jerky – kind of like he didn’t know what to do.

* **

Tony stared off into the distance, Greg’s words banging around in his head, but none of them seemed to make any sense.

“Not funny, you,” he scowled, because thinking this was a joke was the only possible –

 _“I’m sorry,”_ he dimly heard a choked breath. _“But it’s true. Yesterday, he – ”_

“Yesterday, he was probably on the trail of a cold case,” he bit out, unaware of the harsh tone. “You were probably dreaming about it. I mean, what kind of joke is that? ‘Tony,’” he adopted Greg’s accent, “‘Sherlock snapped and walked off the roof of St. Bart’s.’ I bet you he’s deep in his Mind Pal- ”

_“Tony! No, he’s – he’s gone. I’m sorry.”_

* **

Hermione backed up against the kitchen counter before sliding down it to the floor as if her legs couldn’t hold her up any longer.

Movement drew Harry’s attention to Mac as she stood and made her way over to Deeks, her stepping into his way to get him to talk.

“I – it can’t – we just saw – ” Deeks swallowed as Palmer joined Mr. Weasley over the paper. Harry and Ron exchanged glances as Palmer suddenly stilled, his blue eyes saucering.

“Mac,” his quiet tone summoned her and she jolted back from looking over his shoulder as if struck.

* **

‘Sherlock’s gone, he says,’ Tony fumed, fighting the rising panic as he hung up on him and dialed Sherlock’s number. ‘The hell he is. Saw him just the day before yesterday. Seemed just fine then.’

* **

“Oh, Merlin,” she staggered away from the table, her brown eyes stuck on the page as she hit the wall.

“What?” Harry heard Ginny ask.

* **

That damn ‘number disconnected, please try again’ message kept playing no matter how many times he dialed the number.

“Sherlock, it’s Tony. Stop screwing around and tell Lestrade that you’re fine, okay? He’s trying to make me believe you walked off a building.”

* **

Harry and Ron looked at each other as Gabby curiously went to see, only to let out a shocked cry once she got close enough to see the paper article that started this.

* **

‘Number disconnected or no longer in serv-’

Click.

‘Number disconnect-’

Click.

‘Num-’

Click.

If this was some kind of sick joke –

He called Angelo.

* **

Ginny joined Gabby and she sucked in a breath as she stood, her head coming up to stare into space before she slowly – almost reluctantly – turned to stare at he and Ron with something approaching trepidation. Gabby and Deeks also seeming to remember them and turning with the same look.

Harry felt a deep sense of foreboding.

* **

‘Number disconnected – ’

“Sherlock,” Tony was finding it hard to breathe as he talked over that damned message he never wanted to hear again for the rest of his life. “Whatever joke you’re trying to pull, you got Lestrade and Angelo in on it. Now answer me when the damn phone is ringing because I know you’re not dead. Come on, the game’s up. I’m on to you.”

‘-or no long-’

“Sherlock, pick up the phone,” a creeping suspicion was starting to make itself known and Tony beat it back with increasing desperation. “Sherlock.”

* **

Ron came to stand next to him as Tonks and Charlie went to Hermione, who had just begun sobbing into her hands as she curled into a ball, and to the others to see for himself respectively.

* **

“Sh-Sherlock, that’s enough, okay? I’m not in the mood. Just tell me it’s a joke or – or some messed up soc-social experiment to screw with me. Okay, Sherlock?”

* **

Harry slowly got up to stand next to Ron and both took a sort of comfort from the other as Ginny, Gabby and Deeks seemed stuck as they watched them slowly start to make their way over.

* **

“Sherlock… Sherlock?” something was building inside the longer he didn’t hear his friend’s voice.

* **

He didn’t want to see what the article was, but he saw Palmer slowly sink down next to Mr. Weasley to bury his head in his hands. Harry and Ron stopped before they could read the headline of the article in question.

* **

“Sherlock?” Tony was barely aware of his body shaking as he sunk down onto the grass. “Sherlock?” he said again, water slowly beginning trickle down the sides of his face. “Sherlock,” he was really having trouble breathing now. “Sherlock. Sherlock… Sherlock. Sherlock. Sherlock. Sherlock. Sherlock. Sherlock. Sherlock. Sherlock? Sherlock. SherlockSherlockSherlockSherlockSherlock–”

* **

He took a deep breath and slowly, against everything screaming at him to stop, let his gaze land on –

* **

_“SHERLOCK!”_

* **

_‘Famed Muggle Detective Suffering Guilt over Deception Takes Life.’_

Harry was never aware of the wall of magic as it slammed into the Burrow.

Nor was he aware of Ron going just as rigid or of someone he wouldn’t recognize as Charlie gently taking their arms and leading them back to where Tonks still sat with Hermione.

He was never aware of Mr. Weasley leaving or returning to the kitchen, the teachers following him outside at a run, Mrs. Weasley being there to stuff a hot cup of tea in his hands…

Professor McGonagall wrapping him up in a hug he would never remember…

Madam Pomfrey suddenly being there and her mouth moving…

Professor Dumbledore holding him tightly…

A lemon drop being snuck into his mouth – the tears flowing down his face – anything he might have said – being moved into the study – Ron’s just as blank expression, Hermione’s inconsolable sobbing, Ginny and Gabby not knowing what to do except try to be a source of comfort for them and each other, Deeks as he led first Palmer then Mac into the study, the study being locked from the outside as they all moved to the furthest corner and Mac drawing him to her side.

He was never aware of Tony’s absence or the passage of time.

All Harry was ever aware of was the blaring headline over a moving picture and the stomach-droppingly familiar figure of Sherlock Holmes stepping off a ledge and tumbling into the air.

* **


	22. The Funeral

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mac reflects and they meet up with Eames and the people Sherlock left behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, there is some 'adult' drinking near the end, but European drinking ages are different than American drinking ages and then you've got the Majority Age of 17, too, so I don't quite think 'underage' drinking would mean the same to everyone. I will say, though, that Hermione is possibly the only 'real' underage drinking going on since my headcanon says she's the youngest of the Trio.
> 
> Don't go all 'canon' on me or you wouldn't be reading this. :) It will be explained at a later date.

Colonel Sarah ‘Mac’ MacKenzie was usually an action taker.

Being a Marine gave her the experience of someone who was constantly on the move and doing something. She rarely found herself at a loss of what to do and she did her utmost best to avoid that.

But, over the last few days, it had been exactly that.

She had come out of her shock after 00.15 Monday morning with Harry pressed to her left side, and Ron and Gabby pressed to her right. Ginny, Mi and Palmer were on Gabby’s other side and Deeks used his Animagus form – and hadn’t _that_ been an interesting development the night of the reception! – to curl around them all.

Tonks had opened the door a few minutes later once Mac had pulled herself clear and Deeks had managed to change back to his regular form. Venturing out, Tonks got her up to speed on everything she’d missed out on.

Gabby had refused to leave their sides, so she’d been allowed to stay until Tuesday afternoon and she’d been so distraught that everyone had invited her to Saturday’s party, such as it was now, of course.

Someone had apparently called Tony with the news, because his cell was the closest thing to him and, thus, the phone had taken the brunt of the magical wave. Mac had seen what was left and still found Tony’s power both awe-inspiring and terrifying considering Palmer and Stevens would sometimes comment on how easily Tony could take out half the Navy Yard at _least_.

They’d had to sedate Tony and finally achieved it before the dinner the rest of them had missed out on. His magic had still been unstable enough to cause serious structural and magical damage, which was why they’d had to be moved to the study. Tony had been unstable and Dumbledore eventually had to put a block on him lest his magic go out of even more control than it had been already. His magic was either going to rip into the wards, cause catastrophic displacement that Mac had only heard about or take the Burrow and everything else apart. He’d had to be blocked.

Mac had also come across Agent and Prof. McGonagall in her own feline form, the dog completely out of it and the cat on top of him with a purr at full rumble to comfort as much as she could.

Agent had woken up just in time for a breakfast that no one had been the least bit interested in and had stayed out of view in Ron’s room, Mac sometimes going up there to purr on him, too. It had seemed to be of some comfort to him and Mac would have stayed with him all day if it hadn’t been for an owl bearing an invitation to Wednesday’s funeral. The handwriting didn’t seem familiar to her, but that could’ve meant anything or absolutely nothing.

Mac had decided to pose the decision to the kids, which she hesitantly did, and wasn’t at all surprised to have Palmer, Deeks and the Trio immediately decide to go. They must have had the same thought she’d had about Tony needing to go and being there to support him. Mac also wanted the Trio there for closure, though she’d stocked up on tissues.

Heaving a heartfelt, soul deep sigh, Mac twisted her cup around on its saucer while she waited for the others. Ginny wasn’t going because she wouldn’t really be a help to them when they’d already had Ron and Deeks. Besides which, Gabby had wanted her to visit for lunch ‘Burrow time’ and she’d gone to hang out with her some more. It really was nice to see them spending time together in light of the revelation that made Mac want to have Molly Weasley charged with some sort of child abuse.

Now wasn’t the time, however.

She’d gotten in touch with Peter last night to get word to Tony’s friend Sparky about funeral garb and her clothes came in before Mac woke up this morning.

She was currently sitting in the Burrow’s kitchen with a still warm cup of coffee in her hands as she waited for the others. They were going to have to leave within the next hour to make it to the ceremony set for eleven exactly, but she didn’t want to rush anyone because she understood. None of them wanted to have this be real and Mac could only imagine the nightmares everyone had been having since receiving the news and winced as she thought of Eames.

For the longest time, she associated Tony and Sh-Sherlock with Eames, though no one appeared to know how they met or who of them met the other two first. It had actually been a month into her friendship with Tony that she found out his ties to Sherlock and to Eames a month later. One was a drug addict and the other a forger and ‘dream thief’ and Tony was first a cop and now a Federal Agent.

Mac had seen the three of them interact before and they acted more like the brothers Hermione was convinced they were even that early on. Hell, how did _Eames_ react to this news?

Tony had told her that Eames had other magical associates – even a Creswell Alumni -, but only one Muggle confident. Yusuf knew magic existed and that Eames and Tony had it. And her, if she believed Tony and Palmer about that one time where she was poisoned by accident.

A noise made her blink at the back door and she sighed as she found Deeks hovering uncertainly. “Good morning,” she smiled warmly.

“Hey,” he carefully sat nearby, eyes continually flicking back toward her in a threat assessment kind of way that she’d seen Tony do.

It made her even more sad for Deeks and upset at the past he’d been subjected to. “I’m not going to go off on you, really.”

“But you did know him, too. I think I’m alright on eggshells right now.”

“Yeah.”

Ron made his way in next and the three of them sat in wordless silence as the minutes passed. Hermione came in silently, eyes completely red and a tissue seemingly glued to her nose, and Mac recognized the signs of shock when she saw it. Harry and Palmer followed, the younger also staring as vacantly as Hermione was. Mac didn’t know what to say or do that could possibly be of any help. And she didn’t like that.

She was a Marine, used to knowing what to do and then doing it. Not this… eggshell thing.

But if she thought that was bad, it was _nothing_ compared to the lost feeling that swamped her when Tony walked in.

She was used to seeing him in suits at the MNP – especially after a bad day at NCIS -, so she wasn’t surprised to see him walk in to the kitchen with a black suit on nor was she surprised at how well he wore it now that she knew Sparky had been making his clothes for years, but that wasn’t the part she had trouble with. It was his body language that stopped her.

Tony had a forced smile on his face as he surveyed them and clapped his hands together. “Alright, folks,” he met each of their gazes. “It’s about time to actually go out in public so I thought I’d warn all of you now to be ready.”

There was no trace of tears or the Tony of the past few days standing before her now. This Tony’s eyes were dead, though, as he pulled his Undercover Specialist Agent Anthony DiNozzo, Junior, persona on to mask what he was feeling. In that moment, Mac hated Gibbs and the team for making her friend into this person scared to show his real feelings, but she also understood that it was that mask that he was now relying on to get him through the next handful of hours.

She couldn’t get into his head right now and she didn’t know what he was feeling or thinking since Tony had reverted to his Agent form over the past few days. So how could she even begin to help him with his emotions? He wasn’t like the others who were more tactile and wanting hugs. Not right now. But he was going to break down eventually and a look at Palmer’s resigned expression told her that this was old hat by now, holding the break down off until he could be by himself. both she and Palmer would now have to watch him closely after this. She should also probably get Donners and Stevens in on this to have more eyes watching.

A glance at the others showed the Trio frowning at Tony as Deeks – who could tell when someone was working like the situation called for undercover work – just winced in sympathy. The Trio were still so young and they more than likely didn’t have experience with being undercover or a master at work.

“How long will it take us to get there?” Palmer spoke up before someone could say something. “We might want to think about leaving now.”

“And I heard how hard it is to get a cab,” Deeks added.

“Yeah, we probably should,” Mac gathered herself and stood, signaling the others to get themselves ready, too. By the time they made their way to the living room, Tony was already waiting with the Floo powder.

“To the Leaky Cauldron and we’re heading to Muggle London,” he directed, giving the pot to Deeks first. Harry was next and Mac could see his reluctance to go, but Tony put a hand on his shoulder and waited for him to look up before Tony connected their gazes and mouthed, ‘Thank you.’

Mac suddenly felt tears well up and looked away, emotions suddenly getting the best of her. Ron and Hermione went next with the same routine played out with them until it was finally her and Palmer left and Tony smiled slightly.

“You don’t have to, but thank you,” he reached out to shake Palmer’s hand and turned to Mac, but Mac was suddenly pressed up against him before he could do anything else.

“You’re okay, you know?” she sniffled and squeezed tighter. “We’re here for you and I just wanted you to know that.”

“Yeah,” Palmer agreed. “You don’t have to thank us for going with you, Tony. We’re your friends and we should go. And,” he hesitated, blue eyes dropping down to the Burrow’s floor. “I … we haven’t been the best of friends and I’m sorry for that. And for not being around.”

Tony hesitated for a beat before wrapping his arms around Mac and heaving a deep sigh. “Yeah. You know,” he squeezed, “be- before all this. I can’t remember a week where I’ve had so much fun as I did the last one. I can’t really remember the last time the three of us spent that much uninterrupted time together in a long time. And I missed that. Having the both of you around.”

Mac squeezed her eyes shut at that before letting him go with a watery laugh. “Stop,” she wiped her eyes. “You’re going to make me cry and we’ll be late.”

“Merlin forbid,” Tony looked ready to cry, too, “I make the Marine who can tell time be late.”

“Stuff it, you,” she gave a half-hearted swipe.

 “Hey, Tony,” Palmer spoke and interrupted them. “I fire called Donners the other day and he says that he’s putting us in for personal time. He also said he was getting in touch with Mac’s people about taking some leave, too, and that we can take another week off if you want.”

Mac couldn’t help not dragging the Pureblood in for his own hug. “Thank you so much, Palmer,” she knew exactly why the two  of them could also choose to get leave if they liked and Donners knew just as well. If one was staying, they all were.

“And Deeks can stay, too,” he added, shyly returning her embrace.

“Seems like someone who would lie to help friends,” Tony grinned, the first real and true joyful smile of the day.

“Yeah, it does,” Mac pulled away to gather herself again. “I’m amazed at how much we’ve earned some of his trust.”

“You caught that, too?”

“Mm. Yeah, it was… ‘neon light’ status.”

“I don’t get it,” Palmer admitted.

“We wouldn’t expect you to,” Tony clapped him on the shoulder. “Come on, then. You next.”

Mac and Tony exchanged looks as Palmer stepped into position. Tony did come off as a Pureblood to most people even though he wasn’t. And Mac herself didn’t know if she could consider her own family to be Pure since it wasn’t every generation that had magic and it seemed like her line’s always been on the Magic/Muggle line going back centuries.

Was there even a name for something like that?

Palmer was still kind of innocent in these types of matters and Mac and Tony – even Donners and Stevens – waited for the moment when Palmer would realize the actual division in blood and how it _really_ worked.

The pot of powder appearing in front of her snapped her out of her thoughts and she sheepishly took some before getting into place. She stepped out and into the dim pub’s interior not a moment later to where the others waited by the door. Tony followed not long after and they followed him to the curb where he landed a taxi cab almost as soon as his hand went up.

“Mac, Mi and Deeks can go in this one,” he instructed. “The rest of us can squeeze into the next one.”

“Sounds good,” Mac agreed, ducking inside and helping Mi climb in before Deeks closed the door and they were off to the address Tony gave them.

“I think I’ve passed by that place,” Hermione used a tissue as Mac drew her to her side. “A few times.”

“I wouldn’t know,” Deeks shrugged, watching the city outside with wide blue eyes. “I’ve never been here. Usually, Sam, Callen or Kensi would be dragged out to Europe somewhere except that one trip to Romania.”

Ah, Romania.

One of her… favorite countries.

Family lore said she had some distant cousins who’d originated in Romania and half her family believed that it’s where Seer blood came from. Mac had some of that blood, but she didn’t think she’d ever had a Prophecy Trance. Usually, it was some kind of Vision and even those were infrequent. She didn’t remember the last one she had, if she was honest.

They lapsed into silence as they headed to the cemetery where the funeral was being held, Mac looking behind them once in a while to see the boys in the cab behind them. They reached the cemetery entrance and tried to pay the cabbies, but they both said that it was the least they could do. Hermione started tearing up again as she blubbered something about paying off debts that Mac suspected meant something, but it was probably something to do with Sherlock, so she didn’t ask.

All of them just stood there after the cabs drove off, not quite wanting to go in first, but someone wandered by and spotted them before one of them – probably Deeks – suggested ‘Rock, Paper, Scissors’.

“Tonio!” the Italian looked horrible as he rushed to grab Tony, who didn’t resist the hug and just returned it.

“It’s Angelo,” Hermione explained, wiping her eyes. “I ate at his restaurant when…” she trailed off, but Mac simply nodded.

Both Italians lapsed into their language and went on ahead, leaving the others to follow them to a large tent with at least a hundred chairs, a fourth of which were already filled and at least thirty other people milled around while waiting to start.

Mac didn’t recognize hardly anyone, but Hermione spied an older Brit with premature grey hair and rushed over with a cry of “Detective Inspector!” Mac had to smile at his almost panicked look as Hermione hugged him and looked around when he relaxed into the hug. It seemed that Hermione was the only one who knew anyone here, but an older woman toddled up to her with a sad smile and sad brown eyes.

“You would be Mac,” she nodded thoughtfully before reaching out to clasp her hand. “Martha Hudson. I own 221 and was renting it… Tony’s told me all about all of you, of course. Not as much as that one,” she nodded at Deeks, “but Tony said he was a new addition.”

“I’m so sorry for your loss,” Mac smiled just as sadly, tilting her head slightly as the other simply chuckled.

“Oh, dear, I’m not the one you should feel sorry for,” she sighed after a moment. “There’s three here who deserve it more than I.”

“Oh, Eames is here?” Palmer blinked, Mac looking around, too, to spot their old friend.

“I’m not for certain. If he’s not here,” Hudson shrugged, “he might be already on his way.”

“Mrs. Hudson,” a male blond possibly a few years older than Mac herself limped his way up to them and Mac didn’t have to be a detective of any kind to be able to tell that he was one of those three affected the most from transpired events. His red eyes and the numbness on his face said he was too sad to cry anymore, but didn’t know how after the past few days. And he looked tired, like it was too hard to stand there and he wanted sleep, but couldn’t even get a single solid hour in because of the nightmares.

“John,” Mrs. Hudson immediately gathered him into a tight hug and John let her, doing everything in his power to keep control of himself. Eventually, his eyes landed on Mac with curiosity.

“A friend of yours?” John absently patted her back before Hudson released him.

“A friend of Tony’s, but I don’t think you’ve met him.”

“No, I haven’t, but it looks like he’s been a fairly regular occurrence around here,” he frowned thoughtfully. “I’ve heard him and one other bloke being talked about for the past few days.”

“That’s hardly a surprise,” Hudson smiled wanly. “The both of them were rarely able to stay for long, but the three of them were closer than peas in a pod.”

“Mac,” Hermione finally came back with her DI friend, Harry and Ron trailing them. “I don’t see Tony.”

DI Lestrade turned to the other two Brits as Mac and the others started looking around for him.

“I don’t see him,” Harry shook his head, eventually catching the blond’s eye. “Oh, er, I- I’m sorry about… I really only met him twice, but he was definitely a good man.”

The blond stared at him for long seconds, a dumbstruck expression crossing his face as his eyes found the gap in Harry’s bangs that revealed his true identity to those that knew. “Oh,” he said faintly, visibly swaying.

“Hey, Watson,” Lestrade and Deeks leapt forward to steady him, but the blond’s legs didn’t seem able to hold him and he sagged between them.

“John,” Hudson fluttered in concern. “What is it?”

“Just give him a minute,” Palmer advised, kneeling down as Watson was slowly lowered to the floor. “Mrs. Hudson, can you go find some water?”

“Of course, of course. Detective Inspector,” she bade him, “we should go find something cold. Dreadful heat, isn’t it?” she tsked and led the younger man off by the elbow, Lestrade tossing worried looks over his shoulder as she did so.

Harry, for his part, was just as shocked as the others to be recognized at Sherlock’s funeral and Ron could be forgiven for blurting out, “You know who Harry is?!”

“I – I – Yes,” Watson stared up at the concerned celebrity and just started laughing, a slightly maniacal edge to it that Mac wholeheartedly understood after everything. “Harry Potter! Good Merlin,” he hiccupped to himself. “I… I never _imagined_ – all my life, ever since you defeated Him the first time, I wondered how we would meet and why. Everyone imagines that at least a few times in their life, right? It- it just bloody _figures_ that the most famous Wizard in all the world knew someone as mad and brilliant as the World’s Only Consulting Detec-” he choked as tears coursed down his cheeks.

“Of course,” Mi’s bottom lip was trembling. “I remember seeing your bedroom ceiling. And now I remember you from the picture on your mirror frame.”

“Bloody hell. Witch?” he breathed, bloodshot blue eyes wide.

“Yeah,” Ron nodded. “We’re all magic here. Me, Hermione, Harry, Deeks, Palmer, Mac, Tony and Eames.”

Mac smiled slightly as wide blue eyes swiveled around him and landed on her. “Yes, I’m afraid you weren’t the only Magical around.”

He slowly turned his gaze inward and faced forward. “A lot of things make sense now.”

“Hey,” Tony appeared next to Mac. “We should find seats.”

“Tony,” Mi breathed. “This is Dr. Watson.”

Tony looked down as Watson looked up and a flicker of recognition flashed over the blond’s face.

“I remember you,” Watson’s tone was filled with wonder. “I wondered if that was a fake accent. H-he always had an odd look on his face when I told him about you.”

“He knew I was visiting you at the clinic, yeah.”

The two of them stared at each other before Tony slowly lowered to his knees before the older man. “You have no idea how sorry I am.”

Watson studied him for a long moment before nodding; Tony must have been showing something on his face. “You didn’t know either. Th- that’s good.”

Mac wasn’t sure what to do with herself, but she did hear the almost debilitating relief in his tone that he wasn’t the only Magical that missed what should have been in front of them the whole time.

It was pure coincidence that Mac suddenly looked up to find a familiar pair of grey eyes watching them from the chairs.

It was Eames, the last of Sherlock’s closest friends.

The blond Forger didn’t look like he’d slept the past two days, shadows under – and in – his dull grey eyes, hair almost standing on end and ruffled beyond all semblance of order. But he still dressed in crisp black clothes for the day and Mac couldn’t help thinking that there was something inherently wrong with a colorless and somber Eames, the usually bright and energetic troublemaker still where he would have bounced with that Cheshire grin on his face.

Mac didn’t register moving, but she still found herself in a strong hug scented by tea, paint fumes and the cologne she and Palmer had given him one Christmas because the container had reminded them of him. They still weren’t entirely sure how, but it had. Its scent drifted lightly into her nose as she let herself be squeezed. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered, feeling a hitch in her own breathing.

“It’s alright, poppet,” he managed, holding tight before allowing her to pull away. “I… it was a compl – compl – out of left field, I had no idea.”

“None of us did,” she reached up to squeeze his arm.

“Eames,” Palmer was suddenly right beside them and wrapping long arms around their friend, just as easily being dragged into his own tight hug.

Mac looked around to see Deeks and Tony helping Watson up as the Trio curiously made their way to her as their gazes drifted to Eames and she smiled. Once they were closer and Eames released Palmer with a pounding on the back, Mac waved them over. “Harry, Ron and Mi, may I present Eames,” she waved at him.

“Ah,” he sniffled, turning to look them over. “Tony told me about it, but I’d not believed him until I saw the three of you with my own eyes,” he offered a hand. “Mr. Potter, a pleasure and an honor.” He did the same for Ron and Mi, both flushing in surprise and delight. “But the circumstances leave much to be desired.”

“We’re so sorry,” Harry solemnly told him, Mi coming to Mac’s side for more comfort, which she gladly gave.

Eames accepted it with a nod. “As should we all. Did any of you meet him or are you just here for Tony?”

“Me and Hermione met him twice and Ron just once when he came to the Burrow last week.”

“We solved a case together,” Mi told him sadly. “It turned out to be a misunderstanding, but it was the most fun I’d had in Muggle London.”

“Yes,” Eames smiled, grey eyes shining with fondness and unshed tears. “He had that habit, didn’t he?”

“I don’t believe what everyone’s saying about him,” Palmer scowled. “I’ve seen the same kind of deductions in Tony and sometimes in you.”

“I don’t believe it, either,” Mi fiercely agreed. “We saw it, right, Harry? I don’t know about Ron, though, but the two of us have seen it!”

Mac nodded. The rumors about Sherlock Holmes being a fraud didn’t explain some of Tony’s insights created by his own deductions. Sometimes, no one knew how Tony did some of the things he did and Holmes – from what little she’d seen – had the same or similar mannerisms as their eyes ran over someone the same way.

“Tony,” Eames spied him over Harry’s head and Tony’s hands fell away from Watson to meet him halfway, Mac closing her eyes and lowering her head as they almost collided.

Mi squeezed her waist and sniffled. “That’s Mr. Eames, then? They really were very close.”

Mac could only imagine the adventures they shared with Holmes, adventures they would only remember now.

The group eventually made their way to the seating area as the others started making their way to seats. Mac watched Tony and Eames talk with Watson, Hudson, Lestrade and a rather mousy brunette that did a slight double take at Tony before approaching the Italian and burrowing under his arm. A small smile crossed Mac’s face at her reaction to Tony’s lack thereof. She’d no doubt been expecting a sight more like Eames and Watson, but Tony already had a habit of locking his real feelings up and away from prying eyes so it wasn’t as much of a surprise to her.

Ron and Deeks both tried to sit in the back, but Tony refused to let them as Eames herded the rest of them into Watson’s row without so much as a by your leave and without waiting for a response.

Lestrade and Hudson joined them in the middle of the row as the non-denominational ceremony leader stood at a podium behind a table piled with flowers. He went through the usual spiel and boring background before calling Watson up to say a few words.

Lestrade stood with him and the two made their careful way up to the front, Watson’s limp obvious as he struggled.

Once they got there, Watson stared blankly at first the podium and then the crowd. Lestrade put a hand on his shoulder and Watson took a deep, shaky, fortifying breath.

“Hello,” he cleared his throat in the complete silence. “First of all, thank you for coming. It… it’s good to know that someone like… like Sherlock could touch people even for being a ‘high functioning sociopath.’ To those who don’t know who I am, my name is John Watson of the Fifth Northumberland Fusiliers, RAMC,” a cheer went up toward the back and Mac had to sob out a laugh. “I got shot, in Afghanistan, and was subsequently invalidated with absolutely nothing to do after the fact,” he continued with a wan smile. “I… was not in a good place – one even worse back then,” Mac doubted that somehow, “- and who knows where I would have ended up if I hadn’t run into an old friend who introduced me to the brilliant, mad, one of a kind ‘Consulting Detective’ who would become my very best friend.

“From then on, my life changed. And, yeah, sometimes I did fantasize about taking him round the back and shooting the bloody nutcase myself for some of the things he put me through, but I wouldn’t have changed any of it for the world. He was constantly disappearing my milk and refusing to explain how, why or getting more of it and don’t get me started on those bloody experiments that literally took over the flat! It was a wonder he managed to survive for so long without seriously putting himself in hospital and heaven knew I did my best to keep him that way. But, at the same time, he would constantly do his best to undermine those efforts, disappearing off to locations unknown either by himself or with others whose existence I actually just found out about. Heh, I will say that I did used to think they were both imaginary friends and I’m sorry about that, but what else was I supposed to think?”

Everyone who knew Tony and Eames just chuckled knowingly.

“Anyway. I cannot begin to imagine how life is going to be now that – that Sherlock’s gone. Just being around him was an ongoing adventure for me, never a dull moment, and words just can’t… do any of our life together justice. I cannot explain how, _what_ , he meant to me. There are no possible words that I could give you to – to allow you to know. He is the greatest man I have ever known and… and for all the help I’ve done, it is my greatest hope that… that I can be forgiven for all the things I’ve missed. I may have tried being a good friend, but I’m… I’m afraid that I was not the friend that he may have needed in the end.

“I could not begin to guess what kind of friend he may have needed since none of the ones I’ve talked to had any idea of anything, and that is something that I… I hope to fix in the future. To be someone to be counted on when a person can’t turn to someone else. The idea that not even I, his best friend and flatmate, could be that kind of friend for him… it makes me wonder if I could have done something different. And maybe I could have, but now we’ll never know. I just hope that… that he forgives me for things I should have paid more attention to or didn’t do or say at the right moment and… that… that he had just as much pleasure in my company as I got from his. And that he knew somehow that I counted him as my best friend, too. I hope that I was as good a friend that he deserved because heaven knows how many times I’ve wondered if I deserved him.

“But, in the end, I’m grateful to have had him in my life because I know that he was… once in a lifetime and I am all the luckier for having known him. I’m just sorry for all those who can’t say the same, because they didn’t understand him and what he could do.”

Mac squeezed Mi tighter and breathed as Watson finished, tears welling up in her eyes not at the depth of pain in the man’s voice, but the lack of emotion on his face. And she was very much certain that there were things he hadn’t said so as to keep the concern down about himself. She would almost bet money that he had more to say, but now wasn’t the place. And it looked like others knew, too, but they weren’t going to confront him yet, if ever, too wrapped up in their own misery and troubles.

Mac hoped Watson got the help he needed.

There were a few other speeches until Mac was certain that they were going to be wrapping up soon, when the surprising invitation to speak was extended to Tony, who stood and resolutely strode up to the podium. He didn’t bring anything up there with him that Mac could see, but he still set his hands on the podium edge and let his head hang down with a sigh that seemed to come from the soul.

“Let me first start off with introducing myself,” he looked up with a strained smile that made her heart hurt. “My name is Tony. I’m an Italian, so this… is especially hard hitting for me. I know it’s hard for Watson over there and for a whole lot of others out there in the crowd, but it’s different for me and the few others like me that have now found ourselves completely at a loss with the hole now in our lives. Italians adopt people and … I was no different. I’m sure Watson could commiserate with feeling like the responsible guardian at times, but where he lost a best friend, I lost a brother. And it’s hard to come to terms with that.

“You may be wondering how I’m able to keep myself together and all I have to say is that it’s not easy. As Greg can attest, I didn’t take the news well. My friends that came with me can add their own agreements if you really want, but… it’s all I can think of to show how much that crazy beanpole meant to me. He would text or visit me at all hours and he recently learned what it meant about waking up law enforcement. Which I thought was odd considering his flatmate’s ex-military. I mean, come on. I know I don’t appear threatening, but damn. Don’t touch while sleeping or there will be a lamp involved whether I want there to be or not. I couldn’t be there as much as I could have and, believe you me, more than anything I wish I could’ve been there to stop him had I had _any_ idea of his intentions that day.

“But I’m not here to talk about that or assign blame to everything and one, except for where it would go. I’m here to tell you about Sherlock Holmes the way I saw him and one who… I pray to always remember him as.”

As Tony went on, Mac almost burst into tears at the pain he was obviously suffering. He stopped several times as tears threatened and couldn’t speak for others. He wasn’t even halfway into his timeslot and there wasn’t a dry eye to be found in the crowd during a story about one of their earliest encounters.

Mac couldn’t help admiring him even more as he stood there and struggled to finish. Mi was sobbing against her and it took almost all she had to keep from joining her. While Mac hadn’t had as much exposure to Sherlock as she had Eames, she still hurt for them and she couldn’t help glancing at Eames to see his head buried firmly in his hands although she couldn’t tell if he was crying or wanted to but couldn’t find it in him anymore.

She would’ve thought that he would have wanted to go up there, too, if she didn’t already know how he really disliked emotional speeches and would have no qualms about hauling Tony across the world to do it in his stead. Mac was fairly certain he had. Twice.

But nothing out of Tony’s mouth generated any sort of disagreement and Mac knew, somehow, that Tony spoke for the both of them.

Tony eventually put them – and himself – out of their misery and slunk back to his seat, barely keeping it together. He was shaking more than anything else and Harry and Palmer crowded him against the other while letting their own tears fall.

Mac, for once, allowed time to slip past unnoted as she gripped Mi against her and regulated her breathing throughout the rest of the ceremony. She honestly thought that she’d be able to get away with not breaking down until the ceremony leader stopped before the whole flower laying ceremony to announce a final wish from the deceased to Tony, who blinked owlishly in shock.

“It is the last wish,” he continued, “for a final duet of the Studio Ghibli work ‘Spirited Away’.”

“I should’ve known,” Eames breathed in a watery laugh. “Yes, I’ve seen the bloody thing, but… He took it to a whole new level. I still don’t understand the fascination with it.”

“Hey,” Deeks scowled. “Are you kidding? That’s an awesome movie!”

“I’m more of a ‘My Neighbor Totoro’ fan, myself.”

Movement up ahead drew her attention to the appearance of a piano and Tony gathered himself before standing and making his way up as the others stood to stretch and ready themselves for the last steps of the day.

“It’s a wonder we haven’t spent time together before now,” Watson gave them all a smile that didn’t seem very stable and most likely wasn’t. “Although, Hermione’s been explained.”

“Yeah,” she momentarily stopped crying, but no one knew how long that would last.

“I’ve been out of touch with him, really,” Eames shrugged, putting his hands in his pockets. “Except for the odd communication, I’ve mostly kept up through Tony. Business, you see, for one thing or another. I was in the middle of a small job, as a matter of fact, when I received news, but it’s beneath my skill level, frankly, and not a complex time sensitive affair.”

Everyone was instructed to return to their seats as Tony settled in at the piano and all eyes were on him as he sat for a long moment until nodding at someone out of sight before beginning to play.

The [recording of a violin](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4JzlBS2C6Q) soon began to drift over the assembled mourners and Mac was barely aware of Watson’s shuddery gasp and Mac felt a breath rush out of her as she closed her eyes.

She’d heard Tony play the piano before, certainly, but with Sherlock’s violin as accompaniment, it became something… more. This rendition was truly the work of master players and it was _beautiful_.

If no one had started crying before, they certainly were now – especially after taking a look at Tony who seemed to have shut down and was mechanically (if one could be mechanical whilst playing piano) playing his part of the duet. What probably hurt more than anything else was that there was little of the passion Mac remembered from the small number of times he’d done it before. Hell, he’d played guitar with more passion even though that was a different way to show it.

Oh, it was still a flawless performance and it would stay in her memory for the rest of her life, but the passion was tempered and Mac knew that Tony wouldn’t allow anyone who didn’t know him to find that out. He was too good at being undercover – at stuffing his feelings deep inside – that no one would be able to tell the depths of his grief. For all Mac knew, he’d somehow convinced himself that he was playing a role and she knew it wasn’t exactly healthy, but she would let him continue pretending. It was sometimes all one could do or reality would set in and shatter the progress painstakingly made.

And Tony played it so very well, getting up to bow at the very end as the notes floated away on the breeze to a standing ovation full of tears and sobs.

The ceremony leader re-took the podium and allowed any who wanted to lay a flower down on top of the coffin before they lowered it down.

Several of the crowd surged forward and Mac heaved a deep sigh as Tony jumped back to the piano and began playing a [different song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6A3x2dmygo). Someone was expecting it, because the violin jumped in right on cue without missing a beat.

Mac was perfectly happy to stand back until everyone else got their turn and everyone else in her group had the same idea, possibly waiting for Tony to finish up with what Mac recognized as yet another work from ‘Spirited Away’.

Once everyone was finished with their goodbyes, some would return to their own business while others would gather at Angelo’s for the somber occasion. The venue was closed to the public today and Mac wasn’t certain what the deal was with the food prices, but she did know it was lunchtime.

Someone stopped by looking for Hermione and Mac watched as he introduced himself as Mr. Jenkins – someone she obviously recognized after having been involved in his missing person’s case, though it had all been a misunderstanding in the end -, listening to his overdue apology for all the trouble Hermione, Sherlock and Tony had gone through. In the meantime, Lestrade helped Mrs. Hudson and Angelo make their way to the front.

“You aren’t going up there?” Ron asked Watson, who stayed seated.

“I can wait.”

“Not too long,” Deeks told him, “or you’ll be the only one here.”

“We’ll all go,” Harry decided. “We won’t let you go alone.”

Watson studied him for a long moment before a smile crossed his face. “Definitely Lily’s boy,” he gave an approving nod. “Alright, then, Mr. Potter.” He gave them a smile that seemed tired and did little to reach his blue eyes. “We’ll all go.”

“You knew Lily?” Harry tilted his head. “I mean, Mum?”

“Yes, I was behind them in school. We weren’t close, but it was always a treat to be involved in their pranks.”

Harry sat closer and Mac paid attention elsewhere to give them a little privacy, knowing full well the story she could recite by heart.

Tony seemed stuck on a loop and the crowd thinned out considerably as Mac was brought into Mi’s conversation.

Eventually, though, it was their turn and Mac spied a surprisingly large number still at the grave site, waiting for the casket to be lowered into the ground.

The realization made them all stop for a long moment before Mac made the first move. She reached the table now depleted of a majority of its flowers, Tony still numbly playing away with the violin recording on repeat, and slowly made her way to the closed coffin aware of the others doing the same. She whispered a few small prayers half-forgotten from her family lines that somehow managed to surface themselves at the right time and laid her flower down before stepping away.

When she turned back, she saw Eames beside Tony at the piano and it did appear that he was trying to snap him out of it. Mac sincerely hoped that he didn’t blame himself the way he still did about ‘Madam Director’ even all this time later that wasn’t actually his fault.

Watson seemed unwilling to progress forward without the Trio as Mi’s formerly missing Mr. Jenkins laid down his flower and said his good byes and apologies again and if she ever needed anything from he or his partner, it was as good as done.

Deeks and Palmer were already waiting with the rest of the crowd for them to finish and Tony stopped when the recording finally did – and even then, he was halfway done by the time he realized he was playing alone -, his slumped posture resignedly allowing Eames to drag him up and into a tight hug.

Mac smiled as the group timed their actions together, none of them wanting the other to be alone no matter how much they wished to, and turned away to take up a place nearby.

It seemed like no time at all before everything was over and Sherlock Holmes was in the ground beneath a beautiful black marble headstone.

“Well,” she heard Lestrade say almost to himself nearby. “That’s that.”

No one seemed to have anything left to say, almost all of the other mourners dispatching shortly after. Lestrade, Hudson and who Mac was introduced to as Molly Hooper all promised Mi that they would be at Angelo’s and took their leave with each other within arm’s length.

Palmer sighed and Mac followed his gaze to see Eames and Tony standing on either side of Watson, all three just staring at the headstone or into the distance still unbelieving of reality just yet. There was not a doubt in her mind that Eames was fondling the ever present poker chip in a pocket, something he never went anywhere without. It was a universal constant, as far as she was concerned; Stevens hated glitter, Donners hated caterpillars – never ‘scared’ despite Stevens having had to call Tony in to relocate three small ones while Donners made himself scarce – and Eames hated going without his phone, gun, wand and poker chip. In reverse order.

“Hey, Palmer? Did we ever figure out what Donners has against caterpillars?”

“Donners is scared of caterpillars?” Deeks frowned at them.

“He’s not scared per _se_ ,” Mac corrected. “He just thinks of them like most people think of spiders.” She and Tony suspected some sort of childhood trauma, but valued life too much to ask.

“Okay, I admit the fuzzy ones are off putting, but surely not _all_ caterpillars? Where does he think butterflies come from?”

Mac couldn’t help the laugh that escaped her at that, her imagination already filling in the answer in her head.

“What’s so funny?” Ron wanted to know as the Trio moved closer to them as Eames stepped up to the grave marker.

By the time the Trio was caught up, Tony and Eames joined them looking completely wrung out and ready to go.

“Yes,” Eames nodded with a small smile. “I am aware of Agent Donners’ dislike of caterpillars, yes.”

“He should,” Tony snorted. “This is the one that almost ended up ‘disappeared’ as a result,” he jerked a thumb at him.

“He wasn’t that upset,” Eames insisted.

“He definitely was,” Palmer nodded.

“Oh, yes,” Mac nodded at the Trio. “Tossed everyone on three floors out of the building for twenty four hours to kill the things.”

They continued the subject as they waited and it eventually paid off with Watson ambling slowly toward them in a limping stride. “You didn’t have to wait,” he smiled slightly at their presence.

“We most certainly did,” Mi argued. “Magicals have to stick together in times of stress and sorrow.”

“I think the stress part has just gone up in smoke,” Tony couldn’t help smirking as he no doubt remembered his many complaints over the years.

“Well,” Watson nodded, “Thank you anyway. Shall we?”

“We shall,” Eames agreed before eying his cane.

“I can get there,” Watson snapped at his gaze before wincing. “I’m sorry, that –”

“No, no, it’s more than alright, mate. To Angelo’s, then.”

Watson led the way to the entrance of the cemetery, not looking twice at the work going on behind them and definitely not looking back at the grave or he would be in a worse state than he already was, and the others followed him slowly.

“It was a nice ceremony,” Deeks uncomfortably broke the silence.

“It was,” Tony agreed. “Pity there was all that unnecessary crap, but…”

Eames snorted. “Quite.”

“I was overruled,” Watson’s mouth twitched upward at them.

“Really?” Harry frowned. “If none of you wanted the ceremony –”

“It’s mostly the way it was done,” Eames corrected.

“Yeah,” Tony drawled. “If it were up to us, there would just be a regular stone marker if that. Hey, I bet he would’ve gotten a kick out of being rolled into an unmarked grave.”

“For his own amusement if nothing else,” Watson agreed.

“Then why didn’t you?” Ron frowned.

Somebody was about to answer, Mac was sure, but Watson suddenly stopping caught their attention. “Bloody hell,” he hissed, anger in his tone.

“What?” Palmer questioned as the rest of the group caught up. “What is it?”

Mac couldn’t actually see anything except a black town car parked at the curb nearby. A low curse from behind her alerted her to the fact that Tony could see it, too.

“What, the car?” Deeks didn’t know what else could get such a negative reaction.

“Unfortunately,” Tony growled, his magic trickling over her.

“I’m pretty sure you can’t blow the car up,” Deeks quipped. “Somebody will probably come after you for terroristic intent.”

“It won’t be ‘intent’ if I have any say in it,” a shiver went up Mac’s spine at his tone and there was not a doubt in her mind that he could do it. Interestingly, it seemed that Tony’s anger tempered Watson’s and the blond turned on his heel away from the ‘demon car’ to lay a hand on Tony’s arm.

“Tony,” his tone soothed as Watson packed his anger to a corner of his mind. “As much as I want to set you loose, we can’t actually kill the British Government.”

“Not today, he isn’t.”

“Let’s not do anything we might regret, lads,” Eames cautioned, placing a hand on Tony’s shoulder.

“Who’s car is that?” Mac questioned.

“No one,” Eames obviously knew something he wasn’t saying just yet. “It may even be some other poor sod, you know. Come on, then. Angelo’s, remember?”

“But none of us know where that is,” Deeks pointed out.

Eames couldn’t refute that, so he herded them a certain way while keeping an eye on Watson and Tony as they went.

It honestly didn’t take long for them to realize that the black car was indeed following them.

“Who does that?” Deeks wanted to know as he studied it from the mouth of the alley they found themselves in across the street.

“I know at least one person,” Watson huffed a deep sigh. “I better go see what he wants.”

“I’ll go with you,” Tony immediately spoke up to volunteer, stepping forward.

“Absolutely not!” Deeks made Mac startle slightly at the sudden anxiety in his voice and expression as he moved to block Tony. “You crazy?”

“Deeks- ”

“No. No, no, no! Call this an intervention if you want – I will fully admit that -, but I honestly don’t think you should go to the car where this unconfirmed stalker is.”

“But Deeks,” Harry frowned at him. “Watson-”

“Is obviously someone who can handle himself – ”

“No, I mean it’s kind of – I don’t know – tossing Watson under the bus or something in order to save Tony, right?” Harry frowned at her and she actually agreed with that.

“It’s like saying Tony’s varying degrees of importance are higher than Watson,” Mac added. “And it does seem as though Tony knows who it is, too, so why not let him go? We can probably meet up with them again at Angelo’s. Can’t we?”

“We most likely will end up over there, yes,” Watson was temporarily sidetracked by the tableau still unfolding. “Sure you want to come along, Tony?”

“Dollars to donuts, I’ll be getting herded in there soon enough.”

“You heard the man, mate,” Ron awkwardly patted Deeks’ arm. “So, I think it’ll be okay.”

“What if he’s not, huh? Not that Watson’s a jerk that I’d throw under a literal bus if possible, but Tony really is kind of more important right now.”

“Why?” Palmer wanted to know.

“Because Tony has _Abby_ and you know what? Sure, she’s this happy, bubbly Goth, but the woman scares the hell out of me and I can just imagine having to call or – Merlin forbid – say to her face that Tony disappeared into an unknown black vehicle and the one responsible for taking him – the way my luck’s going right now – could very well be a nice guy on the surface, but is deep down a modern day student of Jack the freaking _Ripper_!”

The group was silent, all eyes turning to see Tony’s reaction.

He had an unimpressed look on his face as he crossed his arms, all his attention directed at Deeks. “As much as I’m touched by your unnecessary concern, the Muggle – demanding though he is – is simply that. A Muggle. And you’re right that Watson can handle himself if need be, but I’m more concerned that he may get carried away or take the hit that’s sure to come and not do a damn thing about it,” his tone level as he stared unblinkingly at Deeks.

“As for your concern,” he continued, “I am confident enough in my abilities to make sure we both meet you at Angelo’s at trip’s end. You don’t have to worry about telling Abby anything because there simply won’t be anything to tell. And that said, our ‘unconfirmed stalker’ is perhaps more dangerous than Jack the Ripper in his influence if not nosy curiosity. In fact, in the grand scheme of things, I might be more concerned about Jack the Ripper than I ever will about who I think is in that car – simply because of the fact that Jack the Ripper was the product of Pureblood in-breeding. That means that he had the magic and the resources to do what he did without being caught.

“The prostitutes he murdered were all Squibs in their families and we all know what happens to them, don’t we? Especially before the turn of the 20th Century (1900s). Squib females were the majority of streetwalkers even up until then and it was bad luck that these particular women were in the wrong place in the wrong time. They were just the latest victims in Ripper’s twisted studies to see the physical differences between Squib and Muggle females. He’d already mutilated tens of dozens of Muggle peasants of every stage of life at every age you could imagine in small burgs and inconsequential hamlets scattered throughout Europe and even into the Colonies. He would’ve murdered at least a dozen more – would have started outside of prostitutes – had it not been for the accident that set the stage for a devastating and fatal illness. Well,” a smile curled a corner of his lips, “I say ‘accident’. It wasn’t, of course, but that was a cover up so widespread that even to this day it was claimed accidental. Jack the Ripper was collateral damage, so to speak, he and the two others with him in the carriage. The real target was no less innocent, after being wanted in several countries, but with no evidence to actually make charges stick, so people took justice into their own hands. Strangely, their actions pretty much stopped one of the most mysterious serial killers in European history and they never even knew it. Funny how these things work out.”

Mac never even thought to react as Tony took advantage of their shocked silence to immediately herd the equally dumbfounded Watson across the street and into the car and they drove off as soon as Mac managed to tear her gaze away from the spot he’d been standing in to look at the others.

Out of them all, Mi was probably the only one whose jaw wasn’t halfway to the ground in shock. The younger brunette looked more thoughtful than anything else. “It makes sense,” she caught her glance. “Although, to be honest, I didn’t really think of the magic angle.”

“Me, either,” Mac shrugged.

“I think I heard of the bloke,” Ron frowned, probably trying to remember before shrugging to himself.

“I have,” Harry met Mac’s gaze. “Funny how magic plays a bigger role than you first think.”

“You know,” Palmer added a moment later, turning with his hands on his hips, “I don’t think the idea that Jack the Ripper had magic has ever crossed my mind.”

“It’s Tony, I guess,” Ron told him.

Mac nodded absently before flicking a glance at Eames, who looked incredibly unsettled for some reason. Before she could ask, though, he shook his head and tucked his thoughts away.

“Now,” he spoke up, “I believe we were on our way to Angelo’s.” Eames offered Mi and Mac an arm each and the three set off in the lead as the boys followed behind.

They were silent for a few street crossings before Palmer spoke, “Hey, Eames? What about you?”

“What about me what?”

“Have you ever suspected that he could have magic?”

Eames was silent for a few blocks before answering, “In course of fact, I _have_ actually heard the argument played out several times throughout the years. Both sides were more than compelling, but I’ve always decided to just enjoy the mystery.”

“Yes,” Mac thought about it. “I guess you would have. Detec… Curly Top struck me as the kind of person to run cold cases into the ground.”

“Quite,” Eames nor the others commented on her switch in title. Curly Top was just a name that Tony called him, but it felt too soon to call the real name of the man they’d just buried.

“Tony’s good,” Deeks mused. “I wonder what made him think of magic.”

“Oh, no,” Eames tossed an odd smile over his shoulder at him. “It was _Sherlock_ who always swore blind the Ripper was magic. Tony was never convinced enough that I’d seen to agree to anything, but I will say that the bit about the peasants has actually been documented through local lore, if nothing else. We spent the better part of a year once, trying to solve it after a past client was convinced her great great – perhaps a third ‘great’ – aunt had been a victim of the Ripper, but no one much cared about peasant life back then and most certainly not the gentry.”

“Naturally,” Palmer added. “The killings of peasant women stopped around the time he was injured.”

“Yes,” was more or less all that needed to be said.

They did make it to Angelo’s in a more upbeat atmosphere to find Watson already waiting for them in a corner table with a thunderous expression on his face and slight magic crackling the air around him.

“Where’s Tony?” Ron immediately asked as they settled in.

Watson closed his eyes and did some deep breathing before smiling slightly at them. “Tony went ahead to… Baker… after we got dropped off. Mrs. Hudson isn’t going to be there tonight, so I figured to invite you lot in for drinks.”

“You guys are more than entitled,” Mac immediately answered. “I don’t drink.” Anymore, anyway.

A light appeared behind Watson’s eyes and his smile turned genuine. “No, of course. We’ll pick some tea up, if you like.”

“I’ll make it,” Ron was quick to volunteer.

“No argument from me,” Eames agreed. “I plan to get soused myself.”

Mac glanced around at their fellow mourners to find alcohol was already beginning to make its way into glasses and she wasn’t the least bit surprised to see it. This _was_ , after all, an Italian restaurant and this was to be an after funeral gathering. Angelo dropped by to take their drink orders and let them know the buffet was ready near the kitchen for them. Mac had an alarming moment where the Italian clapped eyes on Watson and it looked like the man was going to burst out sobbing. Thankfully, though, he managed to pull himself together and drifted to the next table.

“There wasn’t a buffet the last time I was here,” Mi commented as they and Harry decided to get their lunch first.

“This isn’t a buffet in the way that you normally think,” Mac told them as they stood in line. “After funerals, food is more or less expected somewhere and everyone is supposed to get their own. And this is a restaurant besides, but I’m pretty sure the staff is in the background today. If they’re even here at all. If Angelo is anything like Tony the way I suspect he is, he needs as much work to occupy himself as possible.” This was also going to be a problem when they got back to the States and Tony back to work. Palmer was going to have to watch him like a hawk to make sure he was taking care of himself.

There was a lot of different foods to choose from, all of them smelling divine and so delicious, but Mac – contrary to character – didn’t feel all too hungry. Unfortunately, both Tony and Angelo would probably turn a mother hen routine on them in that usual Italian way, so she took what she thought she could stomach and advised the younger two to do the same. “And make sure you eat as much as you can or you’ll find yourself tied to the chair and spoon-fed,” she warned as an afterthought.

“Speaking from experience?” Harry wanted to know.

“Yeah. Experience watching Tony do it to Stevens, Palmer and Eames.”

“You’re having us on.”

“Nope. But if Tony doesn’t, Angelo will. I can’t claim to know him well, but they have some Italian Mother Hen rotation and we won’t be able to distract them long enough.”

The three returned to the table for Ron, Deeks and Palmer to take their turn while Watson and Eames stayed at the table. “No sign of Tony, yet,” Eames reported, Mac recognizing the poker chip he flipped through his fingers. His totem.

“What did you talk about in the car, anyway?” Harry frowned at Watson, who heaved a sigh.

“Oh, you know. Where do we go from here and such. Oh, there’s a – a will reading that I… I don’t quite know if I’ll be going to. It’s set for Friday morning and Tony did say he would be there. I can’t decide if I want to or not, even though I probably should.”

“Well, it’s Friday,” Eames pointed out. “And it’s Wednesday now, I believe, so you’ve got until tomorrow night.”

“If you feel that you can’t go, then don’t,” Mac simply advised. “Who else is invited?”

Watson thought a moment. “Well… Frankly, I’m amazed there’s a will, at all. Material possessions … weren’t much of a selling point for him. Nor people with whom to give them.”

“He has to think of you and Mrs. Hudson,” Hermione pointed out. “As well as Tony and Mr. Eames. Why wouldn’t he leave a will?”

“Yes,” Eames gave her a dry smile. “Why indeed.”

When the others came back, Eames went up and Ron asked Watson why he didn’t get anything yet.

“Not hungry right now,” he smiled reassuringly. “I’ll eat in a bit.”

Quite honestly, Mac was herself simply going through the motions of eating; picking up the fork, putting it to work, holding loaded fork, putting it in her mouth, chew, swallow, repeat. Her heart wasn’t in it, but she kept at it anyway with the threat of Tony’s ‘intervention’ in her thoughts.

Eames came back with two plates full of good food and plopped back down in his seat, sliding one plate in front of Watson before finding a fork for himself.

“What’s this?” Watson looked between him and the plate.

“Food. You should eat up. It’ll get cold.”

“But I said I’ll eat later.”

“I know, I heard you.”

“So why did you go against what I want?” Watson glared at Eames, which did have some power behind it and who simply looked over and raised a brow.

“Call it a normal intervention and leave it at that, shall we?”

“And what is that supposed to mean? A normal intervention?”

“You’ll get tied to a chair and force fed until you can’t take anymore,” Harry repeated what Mac told him and Mi. “Especially if Tony finds you not eating.”

“Why should he care?” Watson demanded to know.

“Because,” Mac finally spoke up with her calm and measured ‘mediator voice’, the one she usually broke out when certain JAG personnel – namely Gunny Galindez and PO Tyner – got into a breakroom scuffle. “Tony lost a very important part of his family and will now turn his attention to the ones left, including you. Trust us on this,” her tone gentled as he suddenly deflated of rising anger and upset. “We’ve been looked after by Tony before and can tell you a lot about his MO. So if Eames says to make it look good before Tony comes back, do it.”

“Speaking of which,” Eames turned his own glare on Palmer. “What did we say about keeping secrets?”

“I didn’t think that _was_ a secret,” he protested. “Everybody already knows to look out for Tony if he thinks you need looking after.”

And in a way, it was kind of upsetting because… well, who would look after Tony? Watson, at least, was appeased with the explanation and grudgingly started eating, too.

They ate in silence for the better part of an hour before Watson gradually stopped and closed his eyes for a long moment. “Mr. Potter,” he began, opening his eyes again.

“Harry, please,” the response was automatic at this point, even before said youth could register the tone.

“Harry, then,” he nodded with an odd smile. “I was just thinking about… things and,” his brow furrowed. “I suddenly recalled the first real time I actually felt the slightest remorse at anyone’s death outside of Mum’s. Did you know, that about six years ago now, I got an owl from Hagrid requesting a photo of your parents? I was three years behind them in school and I had just finished my first year at – at Bart’s when I heard about… what happened. I can’t claim to have been close to either, but I did have to tutor the Marauders in Herbology a few times,” he chuckled. “You know, James and his three mates.”

“Needless to say, I was a bit intimidated by them and not at all certain if I was going to make it through intact or multicolored and traumatized. At that point, I’d heard loads about that lot and wasn’t sure how they would feel about being tutored by a younger kid. Frankly, I couldn’t imagine why they needed help at all what with Remus being there and their collective knowledge about this, that and the other. I don’t quite think I ever did get a straight answer from anyone, actually, though Sirius was the first to approach me about it. And now that I think of it, in a way, perhaps Sirius was the one I was reminded of when I first met Sherlock. They were a bit alike with their energy and I’ve always wondered what one would think of the other.

“But I was actually able to get through to them, believe it or not. Sprout certainly couldn’t. James wasn’t quite as dedicated, but he got through. They all did, despite first doubts. Those lads certainly had a way of surprising people like that. Now, your mum wasn’t as well known to me and we didn’t really interact, but I can certainly see how your father was so enamored with her. She really was most certainly a class of her own. I’ve always thought that maybe Lily didn’t much mind his attention in the least, but she deliberately gave off an unimpressed visage so as to make him want to be a better person.”

“What?” Deeks listened with his full attention. “Lily actually did like James, but pretended not to in order to get him to clean up his act?”

“Not completely clean it up. A few well deserved pranks weren’t as upsetting as Lily wanted everyone to think. I’m sorry you never got to spend time with them the way you were meant to,” he told Harry. “I’m sure you grew up into someone they can be proud of.”

“I like to think so,” Palmer told him proudly. “He’s already got the skills and the drive to be a fantastic Auror, but he’s still got a long way to go before he can be as good as Tony is.”

“I would agree,” Eames hid a smile, “except I doubt anyone can be as good at anything as Tony is.”

Mac wholeheartedly agreed. “Nothing against anyone for trying, of course.”

“Of course not. By all means, try your best. It just might not be good enough.”

Somehow, she didn’t think the Trio would mind falling short.

Tony showed up about twenty minutes after that, looking more ragged and older than Mac had sworn he’d looked before, but that was probably to be expected after spending the last hour plus at Baker Street. No one said anything about his appearance as he slumped tiredly into a chair on Palmer’s other side.

“I think it’s safe to say that everything’s set,” he scrubbed his hands down his face and Mac really noticed the exhaustion on his face as if he’d not slept the past few days. She wasn’t certain that he _had_ , not having actually seen him asleep since the news broke.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t there,” Eames must’ve had the same thought as he studied him. “But I’d had no idea that you’d already planned ahead and gone on to the flat.”

Tony picked his head up and stared blankly at him for a long moment before eventually nodding. “I thought I should do it myself. Less chance of something going wrong.”

“Baker Street isn’t that dangerous,” Mi scoffed.

Mac almost choked on her drink as Tony, Eames and Watson simply turned incredulous looks at the rising Seventh Year. Mac herself had taken peeks at Sherlock’s blog from time to time and being friends with Tony exposed her to the complaints he spouted about experiment safety and certain people’s blatant disregard for it, so she knew something of the backstory. Frankly, Mac had no idea how Watson was still alive after having lived with him amongst all the chemicals.

“What?” Mi frowned, tone defensive.

Instead of answering, Eames simply shook his head. “Ah, youth. So innocent.”

None of them really said anything more than that, the rest of the meal going about as well as could reasonably be expected all told. Mac took to watching Tony and Eames, the latter seemingly restless to do something now that his hunger was sated as much as it could be.

Tony, though, seemed tired. He was obviously drifting in his thoughts whenever he wasn’t actively participating in their interactions and the sighs he released seemed like they were coming from a place deep in his soul. He seemed numb, maybe in shock now that realization was very slowly beginning to settle in.

Tony would either fall into a depression that scared Mac to even think about or it would slowly begin to build after a fashion that could result in a – possibly literal – meltdown perhaps up to a year or more from now. The second option would probably be better in the long run because then they could actually do something about it, which wouldn’t be the case in the first option and Mac sincerely hoped it wouldn’t be depression.

Eames seemed torn between keeping an eye on Watson and watching Tony, but he was also dealing with his own crippling grief. The rest of Mac’s group was worried about Tony, but the Trio especially seemed to be more in their own worlds than in the here and now. They were just as entitled as anyone else here to mourn and Mi seemed to be particularly affected. Mac had noticed that she had had an attachment to the Detective during his short visit to the Burrow last week…

Merlin.

Was it really only last week?

How could it have just been last week?

Mac suddenly felt overwhelmed and had to go to the bathroom for a long moment. She crouched down in an out of the way corner and just breathed. The world went fuzzy as she meditated, focusing on her deep breathing and allowing the time to slip past without note, until she began to register a presence in front of her.

“Mac?”

She sniffed and looked up, hands coming up to wipe her cheeks as she took in Mi’s uncertainty. “Yeah?”

“We’re ready to go,” she fidgeted slightly.

“Okay. I’m coming,” Mac wiped at her eyes again before slowly standing up to stretch her legs, wincing at the blood rushing back. She was mildly surprised to find Mi still there, fingers wrapped around each other and teeth biting down on her bottom lip.

Mac studied her for a moment before holding her arms out and Mi wordlessly accepted, clinging to her for long moments as she cried and Mac firmly ignored the time they spent in there in favor of comforting her in much the same way she would – and had – Chloe. Finally, though, Hermione pulled away and Mac silently used a drying charm as she moved to the sink to clean herself up for mixed company.

The boys were still at the table when they got out and Mac couldn’t help the smile that crossed her face as she found Tony and Eames eating tiramisu done ‘the right way’ and prodding the others to try it. Tony didn’t even try with Palmer, though, being focused on Harry and Ron and no one thought to question why. Eames was preoccupied with Deeks and Watson and a story about a recent trip to Italy, too much so to pay attention to anything else. They all looked up when the girls approached and Mac noted the thinned crowd still hanging around.

“I hope there’s some left,” Mac half threatened as she and Hermione retook their seats.

Angelo suddenly appeared with two tiramisu fresh from the back and he’d more than likely been waiting for them to come back so he could deposit their desserts in front of them. Mac simply dove right in, spoon easily cutting through the chilled dessert, and allowed the coffee and chocolate – a very nice surprise, by the way – to calm her nerves and settle her. And it was, as always, such a delicious dish and Mac tried to slow herself down to make it last.

Eventually, as with all good desserts, she was chasing crumbs as Tony levered himself up with another sigh.

“Come on,” he coaxed. “Angelo has a bunch of takeaway for us to bring.”

In almost no time at all, each of them were walking out onto the street clutching bags of food for later. Angelo had evidently been stress cooking ever since it happened and had basically covered the kitchen in every Italian recipe he could think of.

Later, Mac would be so thankful for it as she ate dinner back in their tent at the Burrow, but they weren’t thinking of later right now. Watson led them as if on autopilot and soon they were standing inside the flat known as 221 with the door leading down to unit C not too far from the door to A with B up the stairs that no one seemed to want to climb.

“I’ve got a lot of tea in Hudson’s kitchen,” Tony unlocked A and opened the door. “And there’s alcohol upstairs if anyone wants it. Mi, don’t say a word about being ‘technically underage’ because I frankly don’t give a damn right now. One glass for the three of you, each, because Mac has to have a clear head if the rest of us are going to get drunk. Palmer’s going to have one, too, because he can’t hold more than two and I’m pretty sure that _AJ_ can drink him under the table with only Butterbeer.”

“Probably,” Palmer agreed. “Mac can start the first round of tea for us.”

“Sure,” Mac nodded, grateful about not having to explain her wish to remain sober just yet. She didn’t want everyone to feel bad about it and decide not to drink when they obviously needed it this once and Tony was always good about coming up with a way out for her and Palmer. No one ever questioned it and this time was no different, the fact that Harry Potter was there adding credence for at least one of their party to remain sober.

That decided, Ron went with her to help with the tea as everyone else moved upstairs. Maybe some would want tea with their drink, so it was best to start.

The judicious use of magic allowed the task to go by a bit quicker and they were just waiting for the tea pot to steep when Ron leaned back against the fridge and heaved a sigh.

“I didn’t really know him like everyone else. And I know I only met him the once and all, but…”

Mac completely understood and squeezed his shoulder. “Yeah. Me, too.”

“I’ve had at least three people die in my family,” he went on, “but I was too little or not close to them. And then Cedric Diggory died in Fourth Year – murdered by- by Riddle -, but that was nothing compared to… to this. Any of this.”

“The difference between Cedric and Sherlock,” because of course she followed the news coverage just as closely as Tony had and knew what happened, “is that Cedric was truly an accident. Harry had displayed a quintessential part of sportsmanship that he should be proud of and Cedric was a casualty of someone else’s plan. Even from the beginning. Now, Sherlock… He chose to end it. And I know that is never an easy thing to understand, but Sherlock was dealing with something that we can’t begin to imagine and – for whatever reason – he couldn’t find the support that he already had.

“Watson’s going to have a hard time finding peace with the fact that he just couldn’t do anything and that’s only if he tried. Even if he did try, that doesn’t mean that it would’ve worked and Sherlock would still be here. When confronted with a suicidal person, there’s a 50/50 shot at things actually improving. There could be a relapse and we would probably be having this conversation next month or even next year instead. Actually, I think I prefer it if it was after this weekend,” she loosed a sigh.

Harry’s birthday was on Saturday.

Hell of a time to turn seventeen. He was going to remember this for the rest of his life.

“It’s okay,” Ron offered, reaching a hesitant hand out to squeeze her arm. “It’ll be okay.”

Mac swallowed thickly. “I know,” she managed as tears started welling up again. “I hope.” She vaguely registered her lips trembling and just shook her head. “I don’t want Tony being the next funeral I ever go to,” she whispered. And it could have been. It really could have.

And it likely would have been if Merlin or Creator or Fate hadn’t sent the Trio to him.

Mac stared at Ron for a split second before moving in for a hug that part of her wished she could get from Harm. But it was unlikely that Harm would completely understand in a way that she craved right now. So, Ron was a good substitute despite the vaguely familiar scent of tea and grass that shouldn’t go together and did anyway.

“Thank you so much,” she said into his ear as much as their height difference allowed. “If it wasn’t for you three, I don’t think Tony would still be here.”

Ron slowly returned the hug and shook his head. “If it wasn’t for Tony, I don’t think the three of us would be here, either.”

“Yeah,” she pulled back with a weak laugh after a moment. “I almost forgot about last year.” She, the Trio, Stevens, Palmer, Tony and Donners were still the only ones who knew the full truth about what happened. Frankly, however, after the revelation that Gabby was being used as a snitch, Mac was definitely rethinking her agreement to keep Molly Weasley in the dark about her true role in the entire affair. There was a possibility that Agent Kingsley Shacklebolt, however, might be suspicious about things.

But, unfortunately, she’d given her word to Tony and too many people had already thrown his trust back in his face for her to seriously attempt to tell all or confirm what Shacklebolt might suspect.

“Well,” she summoned a tissue. “I think this round of tea is done. What flavor should we do next?”

An hour later, Harry and Hermione came down with Tony on their heels with a flask in his hands that looked like the one she and Palmer had given Eames once for Valentine’s Day. On a closer look, warmth infused her as she concluded that it really _was_ the one given to Eames. It definitely had some wear and tear on it and tears started up again at the thought that Eames actually used it on a regular basis.

Harry and Hermione were both subdued as they picked out some tea and sat at the kitchen table with Ron, Tony splashing some of the flask’s contents into each cup. “Ron, I guess you’d rather stay here, huh?”

“I think I should,” Ron nodded. “But thanks for the thing in the tea.”

“Just let me know if you’d like some more. These two already reached their limit. Not a lot more, mind. You’ve got two splashes left if you want it.”

“Cheers, mate,” he saluted him with the cup and took a small sip.

“Tony,” Mac got his attention. “We’ve got three more hours left before we have to get back.”

“We won’t be hungry,” Mi pointed out the bagged food still on the rather small counter under charms to keep them fresh.

“Tonks said Dumbledore would rather have us back before sundown,” Mac relayed apologetically. Tonks had approached her yesterday looking like she was ready to bolt should Mac start getting upset.

“Of course,” Tony smiled wryly.

“You can stay,” Harry immediately overrode the request. “We can let the drinks out of our system before we leave and that’ll be easy enough for Mac and Palmer to get us back safely.”

“Of course,” Mi agreed. “I think that you should stay with Mr. Eames and Dr. Watson. Deeks can stay with you.”

“As much as I appreciate the thought,” Tony lifted a shoulder. “Watson probably isn’t going to last much longer before he passes out. Probably less than that after this bottle. Eames is going to be staying here until tonight to keep an eye on him and then head back to Diagon Alley. He’s going to drop by again for breakfast.”

So they really only needed to worry about Tony.

“Okay,” Mac nodded.

“Palmer will be stumbling down in twenty minutes and the rest of us will be up there until an hour before we leave, I guess.”

Tony returned to 221 B a moment later and Mac leaned back against the corner as she watched the Trio drink their tea.

“Maybe I should’ve just gone back to the Burrow,” Harry heaved a sigh. “Then they could stay until later.”

“Tony wouldn’t want one of his family away from him after losing one so soon,” Mac told him. “And Peter can’t get away anymore right now, but I think it’s more a time for chosen family than actual blood ties. Not that Tony and Peter didn’t choose to be as close as they are because they could have just as easily decided to hate each other’s guts. I mean literally and not just as a cover.”

Mac and Palmer knew some of the backstory into Tony and Peter’s family, but enough to know that their friend didn’t have a good childhood before the Creswell Institute and a rocky career before NCIS and MNP.

Mac hadn’t really thought about Tony’s Mixed status until she started hanging out with him more at the MNP and started hearing grumbles about being subordinate to a ‘Half Blood with delusions of power’ with no thoughts about records or experience. She knew, in theory, that it went deeper than that despite not having experienced any backlash as a result of their friendship.

What hadn’t occurred to her, yet, was that knowing was a very different thing from actually having first-hand experience – something that likely wouldn’t for a long while.

The four of them drank tea in silence broken only by Palmer’s entrance exactly twenty minutes after Tony said he would be down.

The time ticked slowly by and they managed small talk and school stories and Quidditch debates and Mac was still trying to explain soccer and American football after Hermione said Tony made a reference when the boys slowly made their way back down the stairs to them.

“Alright, lads,” Eames could actually hold his liquor very well, but he did get more cheery and affectionate around trusted friends and associates. She remembered Donners having dared the Forger to drink during a visit at the same time as Russian Magicals and ending up with an easily amused Eames practically snuggled in his lap as he cooed in bits of Italian. Tony still wasn’t letting him forget it, either. Both of them.

“I guess it’s time to get goin’, huh?” Deeks tipped slightly to the side and Ron hurried to prop him up.

Mac studied Tony and saw that he was slightly buzzed more than anything else, obviously having held back to make sure he could take on back up roles should he be needed. “I guess we’re taking cabs back to the Leaky Cauldron?”

“Yeah,” Tony nodded absently. “We’ll leave from there. I’d rather not leave from here, if it’s all the same. There’s a temporary block on the fireplace to keep other Magicals from coming in uninvited. What?” he saw their looks and shrugged. “You think he only appeals to Muggles? You saw the _Prophet_ coverage on that,” he said bitterly. “Keeping Magicals out is kind of the only reason Watson is still even here and not somewhere else right now. He’s been getting Owls from everyone since the news broke hours after the fact and Watson’s blog is famous in its own right. Word gets out.”

“I think he’s going to take it out entirely,” Palmer added.

“It won’t be today, though,” Tony shook his head. “He’s already in bed and we might have helped that along so he won’t wake up until tomorrow.”

“But sleeping potions don’t mix with alcohol,” Mi frowned.

“I know,” Eames beamed, looking very pleased with himself. “I’ve perfected it, rest assured, dove. The lad won’t suffer much more than a headache.”

Mac knew that Hermione had a new nickname after hearing ‘dove’ come out of Eames’ mouth quite a few times already. After a few more times, Eames would think of her as nothing else for the rest of his life.

For her part, Mi still didn’t look convinced, but let it go.

They made their farewells and Mac let Eames hold her tight, a few words in Farsi passing between them before the Brit turned to the Trio and solemnly held out a hand to them.

“A pleasure,” he shook hands with each. “I’m just sorry we didn’t meet under better circumstances. But,” a glint returned to his eyes as he smiled widely and grasped Harry’s hand in both of his. “If I could trouble you for an autograph, it would be the first step in my returning good spirits.”

“I think you’ve had too many,” Tony snorted, but allowed it and Harry gladly gave Eames what he wanted. “I hope you know the trust we’re placing in you, by the way.”

“Of course,” Eames carefully put the paper in an inside pocket and patted it lovingly. “No need to worry. Haven’t had cause to use my skills for at least a year now.”

But Mac, Tony and Palmer knew that he would keep his word and probably stow the signature in his Gringotts vault with a frame or something. Of course, Eames had forged each of their handwritings before – and it still amazed her to find a letter from Eames and read her own writing; Stevens always getting a kick out of it; and Donners chuckling at it when he thought no one was around -, but usually for fun. Eames looked up with a wink at her and she nodded.

He was definitely leaving Harry’s signature alone.

Eames companionably hugged Deeks and ruffled Palmer’s hair like he normally did and held tight to Tony, who buried his head in his shoulder. And for someone who was just starting to learn Italian when Tony just arrived at NCIS, Eames was fluent in his own right.

Mac turned away as Mi made sure to leave some food for Eames and Watson for tomorrow while they took the rest to give the two old friends a moment. They were all the other had left now, after all, out of their small group of three.

“I will most assuredly be seeing you lot,” Eames drew away with a back slap that Tony returned. “Our three young ones, perhaps not. Still, I shall be content to know that I will expire with at least one meaningful famous encounter in my life. At least, of course, until Tony takes a promotion and takes over the MNP.”

“Are you still on about –”

“But,” Eames cut him off, “believe me when I say it was most certainly a pleasure. I only regret the timing if nothing else.”

“It was a pleasure to meet you, too,” Harry said honestly.

They finally managed to tear themselves away and Tony again got two taxis just by raising his hand – something Eames just started laughing over – and they were all waving good bye to Baker Street and Eames as they made their way back to the Leaky Cauldron.

There, they met up with Mr. Weasley who joined them in the Floo and the trip back to the Burrow was thankfully uneventful.

“What a day,” Palmer sighed as they made their way back to the tent, the Trio unhesitatingly allowed to stay there to be close to the adults at this time.

“You got that right,” Tony shook his head with a snort. “Hopefully, we’ll get nothing else for a while.”

“Me, too,” Harry used his free hand to wipe his eyes under his glasses. “It’s been one thing or another since we got here.”

They spent the rest of the day in a kind of comfortable, yet subdued, silence as they went over various tasks and books and then ate dinner before calling it an early night.

Almost wordlessly, all of them pushed their sleeping bags closer together in the hopes that the others could keep the nightmares at bay. Never was Mac more glad to have all the extra space to stretch out in as she was in that moment when she crawled into her bag with a sigh.

This wasn’t quite the time to be alone and she was glad she wasn’t.

All of them dropped off one by one to the sounds of the others breathing and none of them stirred until dawn.

* **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just to be clear, the whole thing about JtR is a fictitious theory about an actual person.
> 
> I don't actually know about any series of peasant killings, but there is an intriguing group in America around the same time, so there's that. I stopped watching NCIS before the season Ziva left and I still don't like her, which will explain a few things in the series later, so I don't know anything after that.
> 
> The story has two chapters left and I already started on the next story. I hope to get to the story after that by next year, which might be possible. 
> 
> I hope I did everyone justice.


	23. Chapter 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A very unhappy birthday.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter of 2016! Or something. I might end up posting again tonight, but that's the last chapter of the story and I have one last read through.
> 
> I've been diligently working on the Eureka crossover, but I will warn you now that there are slow spots and at least one set up for a future adventure that won't be resolved in one story and there is at least one lab explosion because it's Eureka and it's just so much fun to write.
> 
> Please at least watch a few episodes to be familiar with Eureka especially Founder's Day because it is after that episode that the new context applies and meet Grace then Holly because I really like Grace and Holly has a few issues with taking Magical advice which makes some trouble and you'll fall hopelessly in love with them all.
> 
> (I Do Over is that one episode that every fandom has that just hurts to watch. Especially when the character is half your OTP. T-T)
> 
> If you'd rather not watch them all in one week, I will try to point you to the right episodes for the right context and I'm sorry about any spoilers I put in. But there is a future Eureka adventure in the schedule right now and if you don't know Dr. Noah Drummer, I suggest seeing O Little Town and Do You See What I See. 
> 
> (And for those of you who do... Think Taggart is right?)
> 
> So, anyway, I'm sorry for the last chapter and this isn't a happy birthday, either, but at least two important things are in this chapter that will come back in Secrets and one that could mean something in a future story. So enjoy and I might see you tonight.

One would think that the arrival of a much anticipated birthday would be cause for excitement and Harry did feel a bit of it, for sure. But as the morning of his Seventeenth birthday slowly passed, all Harry could really do was think about Sherlock.

AJ and Gabby had arrived in time for breakfast filled with Harry’s favorites, Neville close behind after spending time with his own family. The young Hufflepuff had immediately cottoned on to the atmosphere and Harry felt kind of guilty as he watched her, Gabby and Ginny splash around in the swimming hole.

Deeks lay back on his hands a few meters away, dressed in his own swim gear, but the blond wasn’t making a move to join them. Neither were the rest of their friends as they lay around them.

Tony was on his back with an arm over his eyes and hadn’t moved since flopping down there after breakfast. No one could get him to move or react to them and Harry wondered for the something-th time what was going through his mind.

He’d gone to the will reading yesterday morning before the other Americans joined him in Diagon Alley for that ‘American thing’ Deeks vaguely explained in a way that made no sense. They came back after lunch acting kind of shifty, but Ginny and the Trio let them have their American secrets and left them alone. It didn’t stop them wondering, though.

“I’d say ‘Happy Birthday’,” Neville picked at the grass off to Harry’s right, “but I don’t think it’s a ‘happy’ anything right now.”

“I’m sorry,” Harry sighed gustily.

“No, I understand. But… is Tony really going to be teaching?”

“I wish. No, it’s just AJ,” he shrugged. The time away hadn’t changed her mind about Tony being ‘Professor’ and even Hermione had caught herself calling him that earlier.

But no. It would certainly have been a dream come true, though.

“Hope he would,” Ron said from his left. “We should have at least one normal year, right?”

“Yeah.” Then again, what would be considered ‘normal’ for them?

“It’s almost lunch,” Mac said from Ron’s other side. “If anybody’s even remotely interested.”

“What’ll we do after that?” Hermione questioned. “There’s nothing really calling to me.”

“Let’s watch a movie,” Palmer suggested from slightly in front of him, watching Tony. Harry suspected his friend had fallen asleep over there.

“What movie?” Deeks sounded interested. “Can we play it out here?”

“Of course,” Mac told him. “We came prepared.”

“Have you seen the _Day After Tomorrow_?” Palmer wanted to know. “We also have some of Miyazaki’s films, but… _Day After Tomorrow_ sounds good right about now, actually.”

“What’s that about?” Hermione asked.

Harry really wasn’t listening to the explanation as he cradled his chin in his hands and watched the girls.

It was a birthday, sure, but anyone could have been able to claim it. A birthday that Sherlock would never have.

And how many birthdays would Dr. Watson have to go through now without his best friend? Or Eames? Or Tony?

It just wasn’t fair.

And why couldn’t Sherlock have asked for help? Could it have been possible to say anything? Didn’t he know that everyone could have helped if there had been a single sign that something was wrong?

He barely remembered that Sherlock was already going through a tough time of it long before Harry had met him in his Aunt’s dark kitchen, but he could have still went to someone.

Still. It was over and done with now, leaving everyone to pick up the pieces. The question was, though, what kind of pieces? Some… or all?

Could they even be put back together again?

For the Trio’s sake, Harry hoped so. They still needed to find a way to keep Tony with them because of the marriage bond. And that wouldn't exactly happen if Tony was locked up in the psych ward.

Harry heaved a dispassionate sigh and shrugged.

Like he’d said, all over and done with.

“What say you, Harry?” Deeks glanced over. “ _Day After Tomorrow_ after lunch?”

“Fine with me,” though he wasn’t actually the least bit interested. But it was something to do, so…

Mac shifted with a soul deep sigh. “He’s still not moving,” she noted Tony’s similar lack of interest. “You can usually get a response when you start talking about movies.”

“Not exactly a usual kind of thing, though, is it?” Palmer sagely pointed out.

“Yeah, I know,” she was silent a long moment before climbing up to stand. “I’m going to swim, too. Everyone alright staying here or interacting?”

Harry wasn’t interested at all and he could tell that both Ron and Hermione weren’t either, but they waved the others ahead to keep their spots next to Tony.

“I’m sorry, Harry,” Hermione gave a shrug. “I know how much you were looking forward to today.”

“Me, too,” Ron studied him curiously.

“It’s alright. Life happens.”

“That it does,” they startled slightly at Tony’s wry chuckle. He let his arm drop from his eyes to smile humorlessly at them. “My exact thought when I was being dragged in to help Florida deal with this nutcase Brit during what was supposed to have been my vacation. Sadly, it wasn’t a one-time deal after that.”

Harry didn’t think he minded at all, despite his friend’s rueful smile.

Hermione smiled sadly. “Do you remember the exact day and time that you met him?”

“I do, actually,” he glanced at his watch. “In about two hours.”

It took a long moment before the Knut dropped and their eyes rounded.

“Bloody Hell!” Ron jolted.

“Wait,” Hermione raised a finger. “You mean to tell us that you – you and Sherlock –”

“- met on my birthday?” Harry honestly didn’t know how to respond to that.

“Yeah. A strange thing, isn’t it?” Tony heaved a sigh. “He jumps an entire week before the day we met years ago.”

“I can’t imagine what this must be like for you,” Hermione looked on the edge of tears again.

“It’s actually not as bad as I’d thought,” he admitted. “Especially with you three around and it helps.”

“That’s good,” Ron looked uncertainly at Harry, though he didn’t say much else.

“It is Harry’s birthday, after all,” Hermione smiled weakly. “I just wish something was going to make it a little bit more special.”

“Actually,” Tony’s eyes lit up with a grin. “That’s not a bad idea. Hey, Mac!” he suddenly called the other American’s attention. “We’ll be right back, okay?”

She waved back in acknowledgment as he stood.

“Come on,” he beckoned. The three friends looked at each other before scrambling up and after him. Tony led them back to the tent and back into their shared sleeping space, none of them wanting to go back to sleeping in the house, yet.

They watched as Tony found his backpack and rummaged around in it before finding what he was looking for and hiding it behind his back as he straightened and turned.

“So,” he smiled widely. “I know that technically only Harry should be getting presents, but I was going to give it to all three of you eventually, so I might as well do it all at once. I gave your actual radios back before everything went south, but as I was thinking up spells to add about a month ago, I decided that you three needed a little something extra. And here they are,” he presented three stacked white boxes and offered Harry the one on to before going to Hermione and Ron. “You can open it.”

Harry exchanged uncertain looks with the other two and glanced at Tony’s expectant look before shrugging and carefully prying the lid off. The cylindrical object he found was slightly bigger than palm sized with a bumpy surface at one end, a black wrist strap attached to the bumpy end and the rest of the green body smooth. His name faced his gaze in black writing.

“Torches!” Hermione gaped at hers as she took it out, her eye color on the body and name scrawled in her hair color.

Harry found a large black button on the end of his to turn it off and on, but he couldn’t see a place to open it for batteries.

“It runs solely on magic,” Tony caught him looking. “And unlike your Army knives, these don’t change.”

“Thank you, Tony,” Hermione beamed. “These will be a very big help.”

“That’s why I gave them to you. Find a hiding place for it from the Order, but they will most definitely help in Muggle situations.”

The Trio did and the four of them rejoined the others in time for lunch.

Harry could tell that Tony was making an effort to lift the cloud that hovered over them, but Harry just didn’t feel very celebratory – even when Mrs. Weasley let him open presents.

Mac had decided to have the cake after the movie so lunch could settle and Harry’s quick capitulation brought Mrs. Weasley on board.

There were the usual ones from the twins, Hagrid, Sirius and Remus, and the slightly bashful ones from Gabby and AJ with one light scarf for cooler weather and Herbology things that Palmer looked envious of. Ron got him more broom maintenance and Hermione got him an updated edition of a book he’d already had and greatly enjoyed. Neville got him some usual Herbology supplies and Mrs. Weasley didn’t have to get him light socks for the school’s drafty halls and corridors. There were other presents from other friends – including Ginny’s new flying goggles and the Benson Trio’s ‘Dummy’s Guide to Chess’ so he and Hermione could at least try to give Ron a challenge – and finally it was the last group.

Tony already gave him a present, but he still handed over a flat box with a wink. “From me and Sparky.”

Sparky had already given him and the others their wedding clothes, so he couldn’t think of what else he could get from her.

Harry let Neville open his own Tony present first and had to grin at the tee shirt proclaiming him a Planting Maestro in vine like lettering. Palmer got Neville an American shoe polish that Neville had only heard good things about and Mac had gotten him a guide of illegal plants in different countries.

Deeks got him self-regulating garden gloves. “Although you might have to adjust the cooling charms on them,” the bond sheepishly advised. “Those are California grade.”

They were apparently made for gardening in California and similar places, but Neville promised to use them anyway with a pleased air about the Americans having thought of him, too.

Attention turned to Harry and he curiously opened Tony’s present to find a flat bit of wood with handles on it. The first handle opened a drawer on the very top, which held a smaller space in the corner, another opened a bigger drawer at the bottom and two vertical handles opened what looked like doors in the middle.

“How does that not surprise me?” Mac had to laugh. “A portable suit closet.”

“I’ve got one of those,” Deeks approved. “The top is for ties, cufflinks and tie clips. The middle is for the suits, shirts and pants – I mean, trousers – and the shoes go in the bottom.”

“You’re probably going to need to borrow this,” Neville offered his shoe polish amid the good natured laughter. “After I try it, of course.”

“Here’s mine,” Mac handed hers over and Harry unearthed a similar guide to Neville’s. This one, though, was titled, ‘A Global Celebrity’, and detailed things that Magical and Muggle celebrities could expect in different countries and their legal rights for each.

Hermione definitely looked interested as he leafed through it.

“Here,” Deeks all but threw a package at him as he almost dove behind where AJ and Ginny shared the loveseat.

When the paper fell away, Harry was faced with quite an array of Muggle chocolates including an American brand partnered with Hogsmeade and a rather large Hershey’s Kiss in shiny green wrapper.

“Everyone gets some, of course,” Mac announced, practically drooling herself.

Palmer’s present wasn’t Herbology related as he’d thought, but a gift certificate to one of Liberty Square’s more popular restaurants - the card being good for up to ten years. “You’re bound to get to America sometime,” he explained, never giving a hint to anyone that Harry and Hermione had already been. “Oh and they’ve got two other branches in Colorado and Washington State if you end up there instead. They’ll honor it.”

“And you can bring us, too,” Hermione looked it over, because Harry wouldn’t invite anyone else but his two mates.

“I’ve got some others here, too,” Tony revealed a few more presents. “Peter, Susie, Stevens and Donners sent these along.”

Peter’s gift of a black tie and gold Snitch tie pin went into the portable suit closet; Susie’s Cup o’ Joe gift card joined Palmer’s; Stevens sent a leather wristband that he wasn’t sure what to do with; and Donners’ contribution was a shiny rock.

“His magpie tendencies,” Palmer nodded understandingly. “I’ve got one, too.”

“I’ve still got mine,” Mac added. “Still don’t know what he’s expecting me to do with it, though.”

“A lot of us get one at least every year,” Tony told everyone. “Maybe two or three years. I’ve got a box in my office solely for all those pebbles and I’ve probably got enough now to make a small fish very cozy.”

Harry shrugged and put the pebble in with the tie pin to be sure he didn’t lose it by accident or something if it turned out to be important somehow.

Since both Harry and Neville were now legal, they used their own magic to take care of all their new possessions before heading back out to the tent for the movie.

The telly was set up and popcorn was ready in addition to cool drinks and Harry’s sweets, the big Kiss being divided more or less equally amongst Harry and his friends once Tony revealed a different Kiss that the four Americans divvied up for themselves.

“That doesn’t look fair, though,” Ginny frowned. “Palmer’s bit is smaller. Not even three bites.”

“Oh, don’t worry,” Palmer reassured her. “I’m more of a popcorn person. Besides, I want to save room for the cake.”

“Unlike the rest of us,” Tony added, “who can usually just keep eating, right, Mac?”

“Sure,” she was savoring her chocolate too much to pay attention, something Tony had been well aware of.

They settled in for the movie and Harry let himself get drawn into the movie’s topsy-turvy world, one that he was glad he didn’t live in as tornadoes ripped Los Angeles apart. The Sam character hit a distinct chord with him as a crowd of adults figured him for a scared kid and disregarded his information. Harry just hoped his situation ended more happily.

The movie ended with an ending that Harry honestly wasn’t expecting and then the group returned to the house for cake.

“Dinner’s going to be rather light, I’m afraid,” Mrs. Weasley announced.

“That’s fine,” Harry and Neville agreed.

AJ came back from the loo while the group was deciding to head back to the tent for some other activities. “The light’s out,” she told Ginny.

“Of course it is,” she groaned.

“Don’t worry, Gin,” Tony told her. “The Trio and I will handle it.”

“We will?” Ron frowned.

“I’m not going back out there by myself,” Tony said flatly. “You know what happened last time.”

So, the Trio accompanied Tony out to the shed with minimal fuss and Tony made them stand at the door just in case. “Oh, I almost forgot,” he turned back before he got far. “I wanted to give these to you earlier, but I figured you’d want to read these for yourselves in a quiet place away from prying eyes. Now, you know that I went to the will reading the other day and I ended up with these for you.” He reached into a pocket to extract three plain white envelopes with their names written on them in a handwriting that Harry recognized.

“Sherlock wrote those,” he swallowed thickly, the writing definitely a match to the note he’d gotten at his Aunt’s house.

“Yeah,” he handed one to each. “I don’t know what’s in them, but you can read them upstairs if you want.”

“I can wait,” Harry automatically decided.

“I will, too,” Hermione, then Ron, agreed.

“Okay,” Tony nodded. “Just… before something happens to those.”

“We will,” Harry promised. He watched Tony start making his way into Mr. Weasley’s Muggle things before turning to his other two friends and their own letters.

By the time Tony got back, Harry had made sure that the letters were fire/water/potion/ink/spill/tear- proof, but still wanted to put them in their trunks to be sure nothing would happen to them. Hermione wasn’t certain that she even wanted to read hers at all, but it was the only thing they had left of Sherlock.

They went back to the house to replace the lightbulb and rejoined the others back at the tent to find a heated argument about the next movie. Tony settled it by announcing, “Kiki’s Delivery Service!” before plucking the movie out of thin air and setting the movie up.

It was a good movie – for having a girl as the main character -, but watching Kiki flying around on her broom made him want his own and flying took up the rest of the day as a result.

Dinner combined both his and Neville’s favorites, but they’d been eating what seemed like all day and Harry didn’t go back for full seconds like Mac, Deeks, Ron and Ginny did. They had the rest of the cake for dessert with vanilla ice cream before wandering outside.

“So,” AJ had her hands clasped behind her back as they walked among the orchard trees. “Everyone’s leaving this week?”

“Yeah,” Palmer answered. “We’re going back… Tuesday? Tony evidently has a slight emergency to straighten out in Oregon.”

“And since I’m going to be dropping Deeks off in California, anyway,” Tony shrugged, not giving any hints to his thoughts, “might as well check it out.”

“They requested you specifically?” Ginny wanted to know.

“Not really, but a Wizard’s involved and I believe his Muggle friends have been read in on Magic, which explains why I’m going.”

That’s right. Tony’s Liaison role included interacting with Muggles who knew of Magic.

“Well, I hope you manage to help him,” Hermione smiled. “But it’ll probably be solved within hours.”

“One can only hope,” Mac added before they all fell into silence.

Somehow, during the course of the next hour, Harry, Ron, Tony and Hermione wandered off in a different direction than the others, but none of them were worried about it since they were going to end up back in the house for AJ, Gabby and Neville to head home for themselves.

To the Trio, it wasn’t a big deal to say good bye to the three of them since they would all see them again come September – except for Gabby, of course -, but it was different for Tony, Mac, Deeks and Palmer. They would likely never see them again.

Whether that meant the others or the Trio themselves, it was true and Harry breathed deeply as he locked this moment into his memories. Who knew if they would see Tony again after this nor when. And it was a terrible thought.

“I’m really glad you’re here,” Ron glanced over at Tony. “I had fun before…”

“I know,” Tony agreed. “I’m really glad I’m here, too. I always have fun with you three.”

“And us with you,” Hermione came over to link their arms together. “Please don’t think otherwise.”

“I’ll try not to,” he smiled weakly at her.

They eventually met back up with the others in time to say good bye to their guests before they left.

“It was nice meet you, Agent DiNozzo,” Neville held his hand out, Tony gladly clasping it.

“And you, Longbottom.”

Gabby scarcely waited for Neville to go off down the line before she was burrowing into Tony. More than likely, she whispered something to him, but Harry didn’t know what it was from where he stood with the others saying goodbye to AJ.

“We’ll see you in the new year,” Hermione hugged her tight. “But we’ll be available if you want anything before then.”

“Okay,” she turned to the others and Harry was glad she got along so well with the Americans. They liked her, too.

Though Tony might have a fight on his hands with ‘Professor’ as she turned to him last. “I’m not,” he grumbled, allowing a hug he wasn’t quite expecting.

“Don’t think so low of yourself,” Mac teasingly chided. “You can be the Defense teacher if you really work at it.”

“Please,” Ginny held a hand with a sigh. “Don’t give us false hope.”

“Roger that,” she shrugged.

But it was nice to pretend for a while that Tony was going to teach for their last year.

They said a second round of goodbyes before first Gabby, then Neville and finally AJ stepped into the fireplace and disappeared into the green flames to leave an empty hearth behind.

“Well,” Ron turned to the others with a shrug. “That’s that, I guess.”

“Yeah,” Harry rubbed the back of his neck.

That was that.

“So,” Ron shifted slightly after a moment. “You lot want some tea?”

After a good cuppa, they trickled out of the house and headed back to the tent with a second helping of tea, milk and biscuits that were made after lunch.

“It’s hard to believe the day passed so quickly,” Palmer sighed before shrugging. “But, then, we’ve been waiting for this all month it seems like.”

“Yeah,” Harry agreed, though he’d wanted his birthday to go that much more quicker. He knew – hopefully – that Tony wasn’t too badly affected by the day, but he couldn’t see how Tony wasn’t off by himself right now considering that it had been Sherlock that Tony had met on this day so long ago. He was still glad that he himself was now an adult and didn’t have to rely on others to do anything else for him.

He used his newfound freedom now, absently waving his wand at a pouf until it was where he wanted it before dropping onto it with a sigh. “I’d like to thank all of you for being here,” he told them as they settled all around him.

“Thanks for letting us throw your party,” Ginny spoke for her brother and herself.

“And for inviting the rest of us,” Deeks hummed from his own pouf. “Well, I mean, thanks for having something to even invite us to and thanks to Tony for being the one to invite me in the first place.”

“For selfish reasons, I assure you,” Tony waved his gratitude away. “You were strung kind of tight and I figured you’d want to get away before you had a magical episode and I’d be forced to erase people’s memories or something.”

Harry grimaced at the thought. Tony’s loyalty to NCIS was like his own to Gryffindor. If just the thought of altering a Housemate’s memories made him balk, Tony’s reaction could be far worse.

“Well, thanks to everyone for inviting us to begin with,” Palmer added a moment later.

“Can’t say I’m not happy to turn the tables on Mum and them,” Ginny wore a grin the Trio could definitely relate to. And it most certainly had been an unforgettable memory to see someone actually one up the Order almost at their own game.

“That’s us,” Deeks stretched lazily. “Always fighting for the underdog.”

“And we appreciate it,” Ron matched his sister’s grin.

In almost no time, it seemed like the night was speeding up as yawns got bigger and blinks got longer and soon Ginny and Palmer were going to bed.

“I guess it’s time to head out,” Mac almost fell off her pouf in a yawn. “I sit corrected,” she laughed, wiping at her eyes. “ _Definitely_ time to head out.”

Tony and the Trio were soon the only ones left to finish the snacks and tea, but Harry couldn’t stay up for much longer, either.

“Alright,” Tony sighed, tipping his head back to finish the last of the milk. “I give. Time to hit the rack.”

One of the things Harry hadn’t taken into account when they arrived at the Burrow was the fact that Tony, Palmer, Mac and Deeks were technically Navy – especially Mac – which meant that phrases and words Harry would never have heard of before were constantly around. At the very least, now, Harry was beginning to understand some of the Navy terms being bandied about and that meant that the Trio didn’t need explanation on what Tony’d just said.

All the used dishes were left on the table in manageable piles so they could easily be carried back to the Burrow in the morning, and Harry and Ron led the way to bed.

Once they’d changed and settled into their sleeping bags, Harry couldn’t help remembering Sherlock’s visit to the Burrow and a pang of loss rippled through him.

“Tony?” Ron said from his left. “I dunno if I said it before, but I’m sorry about Sherlock.”

“Me, too,” Harry agreed. He watched the darkness beyond where he knew the tent roof was above him. He didn’t need his glasses to imagine the dark night sky hidden from sight.

If he thought about it, he could easily picture Sherlock’s silhouette as he brought his violin up to his chin.

“Where do you think he is right now?” he distantly heard Hermione’s sleepy voice ask.

“Africa,” Tony’s answer seemed to cue Harry’s Sherlock into playing a soft lullaby that pulled him in deeper into the scene.

“And… what would he… possibly be doing in Africa, then?” Hermione was fading, but the amused tone was clear as a bell.

“Hell if I know,” Tony answered back, but Harry thought he had an idea.

Before he could tell them that Sherlock was giving the African stars a personal concert, he dropped off to sleep with a smile on his face and Sherlock’s playing drifting in the air around him.

* **


	24. Goodbye Again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAPPY NEW YEAR!!
> 
> Last chapter of the story, first of the year. 
> 
> Just Another Day will be up very soon. 
> 
> Thanks for your patience and support!  
> H

"Damn, this is going to suck," Deeks sighed as he saw the time.

Harry, Ginny, Hermione and Ron helped them gather belongings into the sleeping area to be packed for the trip home. Harry most certainly didn’t want them to go, but Tony already had another assignment lined up for him and couldn’t wait anymore.

Mac, Palmer and Deeks couldn’t stay, either, since Donners had told them to come after midnight on Wednesday morning to make up the time difference. And it was after midnight now, which would put a DC arrival at 8 pm and a California arrival at 5 pm according to Mac.

“Yeah,” Palmer agreed with a grimace. “And Tony’s gonna have to stay on the West Coast a little longer.”

Harry watched Tony pack his stuff as he hefted his sleeping bag higher in his arms. Deeks had his already in his backpack and Palmer and Mac would leave theirs in the tent with Tony. The tent would also stay with Tony so he could go over the wards and such while he was helping the other Wizard.

He hadn’t been able to do much the past few days since the Trio wanted to spend time with him and he also seemed to want to cling to them in turn. So, they just drifted around together as Ginny hung out with the others.

They had come across Palmer snooping around the local plants a number of times with Deeks and Ginny, and Hermione had been sorely tempted to join them the first number of times. Ginny started taking notes some time later to allow them to stay together.

They all took over the swimming hole and Tony and Harry let Mac enchant a small object to act as a Snitch a number of times and they were still in a dead lock. Harry had to revel in the knowledge that he was up against a worthy opponent who didn’t hold back despite his and Ron’s continued suspicions to the contrary.

And it was like all the other summers, but _better_ with his friends all there and he honestly couldn’t much explain it. He wasn’t sure he even wanted to, either.

He just knew that he didn’t want it to end.

And yet the time for departure was closing in.

“Alright,” Mac finally straightened with a gusty sigh. “I’m ready to go. Theoretically.”

‘Theoretically’ was right. None of them looked like they wanted to go and none of the rest looked ready to let them, but they couldn’t stay forever. And they would have to go back to school eventually.

“This really would be a lot easier if you were teaching,” Ginny told Tony.

“And we could visit,” Palmer’s smile was bittersweet and wistful.

“But we have to face facts,” Hermione had more or less been on the edge of tears all day and it looked like she was already shedding tears now. “They have to go.”

“Not forever,” Deeks assured. “We’re bound to see you again sometime.”

“You sound so confident,” Ron told him glumly.

“Sure. It’s either that or kidnap you. Personally, I don’t think I can pull orange or stripes off.”

“Go and kidnap them,” Ginny encouraged, though Harry couldn’t exactly tell if she was joking. “I don’t know anything.”

“Mac would,” Tony grumbled.

“I know the rules,” Mac tilted her head thoughtfully. “That certainly means I know how to get around them.”

“Like Hermione,” Ginny side glanced at her with a smirk.

They eventually all finished packing their things and Harry led the others back to the house after one last walk through of the tent they’d had so much fun in.

Ginny and Hermione headed to Ginny’s room as Harry and Ron continued up the stairs, no trace of the extra rooms left from the wedding.

They came back downstairs as the Americans gathered around the fireplace staring at each other almost helplessly.

“Have a good trip,” Ginny started first or they would have stood staring at each other for the rest of the morning until dawn. She first went to Mac and then Deeks before Hermione and Ron reluctantly followed.

Harry didn’t want to move, but Mac turned to him after hugging Ron and opened her arms with a sad smile and he was suddenly wrapping his arms around her with a shaky inhale. She wrapped hers around him in turn and squeezed just as hard.

“Chin up, kid,” she spoke into his ear. “It’s not over, yet, and thinking like it is will just be self-fulfilling. Think otherwise, that we’ll all see each other again, and we will.”

“Easier said than done,” he answered before pulling away.

Palmer didn’t seem like he hugged people a lot, but Harry could relate, and Deeks added a few slaps on the back before Harry could face Tony.

“I’ll see you later,” Tony put on a smile before moving in. “I’ll see you all later,” he squeezed.

Harry squeezed harder and buried his face in his friend’s shoulder with a shaky sigh. “I hope so.”

He didn’t notice anything outside his little bubble until Hermione slid back in next to him with a choked sob.

“Group hug!” he dimly heard Deeks before warmth surrounded him on all sides and he couldn’t hold back the escaped tears even if he wanted to.

“Okay,” Mac eventually voiced roughly. “Now we really have to get going.”

Everyone stepped away with red eyes and with damp cheeks and Tony ruffled Harry’s black hair with a slight smile.

“I’ll go first,” Mac sniffled, wiping her eyes with a hand. “Before I decide to just stay until this time tomorrow.”

“Or you could just stay until school,” Ginny told her.

“I’ve got a Wizard in distress I need to help save,” Tony had to shut her down. “I don’t know what trouble he’s in, but I can’t just leave him there without backup.”

“Which means we better get going, huh?” Deeks smiled slightly.

Mac went to the jar of powder first. “See you,” she stepped into the fireplace before calling out, “MNP Headquarters!” and disappearing into the green flames.

“Good thing we all said goodbye to everyone else already,” Deeks sighed, walking up next. “We’re all heading to DC and I’ll go with Tony to LA. He’s on his own after that.”

“See you,” Harry waved. “Thanks for being here.”

He disappeared as Palmer made his way next.

“I had a great time,” he beamed. “Thanks for inviting me!”

“Thanks for being able to come, Palmer,” Hermione responded, sniffling.

He disappeared, too.

“Thanks for everything, guys,” Tony quietly told them as they turned to him last.

“Thanks for showing the Order up,” Ginny returned.

“That was probably the best part,” Ron tried a grin, but it wasn’t as big as he probably meant.

“Be careful, okay?” Hermione implored. “And take care.”

“Be seeing you,” Harry absently added, green eyes tracking the Italian as he reluctantly headed for the powder jar and took some.

Tony stood there for a long moment, taking them in as they watched him like this was to be their last time in the same room.

For all they knew, it very well could be.

And Harry was sure that he wasn’t the only one drinking Tony in just as much in that same moment.

“Alright,” Tony smiled weakly before stepping into the fireplace. “Thank you for being there for me,” he nodded. “I know it wasn’t easy for you, either.”

“Think nothing of it,” Hermione dismissed. “You would have done the same for us.”

Harry, Ginny and Ron echoed their agreement and they must have stood there too long before Ginny sighed and waved.

“We’ll see you again,” she vowed. “Stop acting like we won’t.”

“Okay,” Tony smiled weakly. “If you say so.”

“I do. And we will. See you soon, Tony,” Ginny said firmly in that confident way one had when they didn’t understand the whole story.

“Okay,” he gave a quiet nod as he met Harry’s eyes, then Hermione’s, then Ron’s. There was so much in that meeting of their gazes, but no words could begin to express any of it. “See you all soon. Fair winds and following seas.”

Harry was vaguely aware of anything else as Tony disappeared from sight. He just wished it didn’t sound so much like goodbye. But it more than likely was.

“We’ll see him again,” Ginny insisted as she followed them into the kitchen where Ron immediately went to the dishes. “Stop acting like we won’t.”

“How do you know?” her brother challenged as he put the kettle on.

“What, that we’ll see him again? Seriously? After all that’s happened? You forget. He may not be Order, but he’s a friend of Dumbledore’s. He’ll show up again, you’ll see.”

And Ginny truly, truly believed that.

As Ron set three bowls full of tea in front of them, though, Ginny gave herself a nod and took a smaller bowl for herself to take to the living room – which told Harry that she was still rattled under her confidence.

For long silent moments, Harry, Ron and Hermione sipped at their bowls of tea and missed Tony that much more.

“You think she’s right?” Hermione sounded small some moments later. She was still trying to gather herself, but to no avail.

“Well,” Ron shrugged. “Sure. I mean… someone has to be.” He fell silent before continuing, “Besides. Deeks told me that if you’re so certain of one thing, it’ll most likely be completely opposite. So.”

“Right,” Hermione nodded as he trailed off lamely. “So.”

“Yeah,” Harry sighed as she tried and failed to find something else to say. “So.”

Because there was literally nothing else to say. Nothing they _could_ say.

Not at this moment, not tonight, as they fell to their thoughts.

Thoughts of Tony and his friends; of the last couple of weeks and how each wished the time lasted longer; of the future without a guarantee of contact with Tony.

 But the coming school year took precedence as it loomed ever closer with each passing hour.

It was their final year and each of the Trio had absolutely no idea how to deal with that.

They didn’t have the first clue about who the new teacher was or what the year held in store for them. And each would admit a sliver of fear at the unknown, but they were Gryffindors and could fight that fear down. Not easily, but they could.

But truly?

Being Gryffindors didn’t guarantee _anything_ when it came to the new school year.

It was going to be an eventful year like every year since First, but this year was going to be different.

They would find secrets never meant to see the light of day, just like every other year. They would have fun and find challenges and terrifying moments in turn and they would find one turn after another.

Just like every other year.

But this year wasn’t go to be like ‘every other year’. Not by a long shot.

As they sat in the Burrow’s kitchen, Harry, Ron and Hermione had no idea just how different this year would be.

Or that they would find possibly the biggest secret they never could have imagined.

It wasn’t going to be easy or all fun and games, but the year’s journey was going to be something they would never forget.

And what they would find along the way? Well…

 _That’s_ a secret.

* * *

 

F I N I

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Sweet Danger](https://archiveofourown.org/works/6679066) by [HyperMint](https://archiveofourown.org/users/HyperMint/pseuds/HyperMint)




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